Civil Brand is a 2002 film written by Joyce Lewis and Preston A. Whitmore II and directed by Neema Barnette. It features N'Bushe Wright, Da Brat, Mos Def, LisaRaye McCoy, and Monica Calhoun. The film is about a group of female inmates fighting back against their abusers and taking over Whitehead Correctional Institute, where they are incarcerated. It won four awards and received 1 nomination.

Frances, the new inmate at Whitehead, befriends a circle of inmates, and together they rebel against the prison’s abuse and exploitation. After several failed attempts to stop the harsh working conditions along with the rape and death of their friend Lil’ Mama, Frances and the other inmates decide to take action and take control over the prison to stop the abuse once and for all.

Plot[link]

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Set in the Whitehead Correctional Institute, the film begins with Sabrina Downs (Da Brat) narrating a specific experience she had while serving time as a convict. Her story begins as she meets Frances Shephard (LisaRaye McCoy), a timid woman that is new to the prison system, during their bus ride to the correctional facility. The women arrive at the prison, where they meet Captain Alan Dease (Clifton Powell), who proceeds to line them up and exclaim the rules of the prison and consequences for not abiding by them.

As Frances is escorted by an officer to the jail cell she will be living in, she enters to a scene of female convicts gambling, smoking, and talking amongst themselves. She attempts to move in with her cell mate Nikki Barnes (N'Bushe Wright), who is presumed to be the leader amongst the convicts, but is denied and instead lives with Lil’ Mama (Lark Voorhies), a 17-year old pregnant convict who is deeply involved in Christianity and befriends Frances. Lil’ Mama introduces Francis to another inmate named Wet (Monica Calhoun), who informs her on the different crews in the prison. When asked what crime she committed, Frances confesses that she accidentally murdered her abusive husband in effort to protect herself. The next day, Frances is familiarized with the inmates’ daily routine of hard labor in what the other convicts refer to as a “sweatshop.”

Michael Meadows (Mos Def), a law student who is hired as the new correctional officer at Whitehead, enters Dease’s office and introduces himself. They have a brief conversation before Dease is called to stop a fight that has occurred between Nikki and Aiesha (Tichina Arnold), who the other inmates claim to be Dease’s secret mistress and informer. After two officers take Aisha away for starting the fight, Dease has an intimidating conversation with Michael informing him that he runs the prison, not Nelson (Reed R. McCants), the warden. Nelson approaches Dease and they collaborate about their plans to increase their profit off the prison.

Aisha enters Dease’s office to discuss her fight with Nicki and Dease slaps her in the face, telling her she’s unimportant. He presents Aisha with a gift but refuses to give it to her until she provides him with any information about the other convicts. Dease then turns off the surveillance camera and forces Aisha to perform oral sex on him. After she leaves the office, Aisha finds Frances, punches her in the face for confessing that Aisha caused the fight, and steals her necklace. Aisha leaves around the corner and is surprised by Nikki, who stabs her and takes Frances’s chain back. After the incident, Michael takes Frances to Dease’s office where Nelson questions her, but Frances provides no information about what she saw and is let go. Later that night, Dease and the other officers enter Nikki’s cell and beat her, claiming that they know she stabbed Aisha. According to Sabrina’s narration, however, Dease secretly loves Nikki and abuses her because she does not return the feelings.

Michael enters the break room where Dease and the other guards are. They begin to discuss the possible closing of the prison and John Banks (Robert Archer Lynn), a white officer, is concerned about finding a new job. Dease claims that the loss of jobs is associated with untrained students such as Michael stealing their jobs, which creates tension between the other officers and Michael. As Michael attempts to defend himself and the mistreated female inmates, Dease proceeds to yell at him that these women have no respect for society and are therefore deserve to be treated poorly. Later, Michael does his own research on the prison system and discovers that these female convicts are being exploited for cheap labor.

At night, Lil’ Mama becomes very ill and the other convicts are concerned about her and her child’s health. No officers come to help and Frances, who was a nurse, takes care of Lil’ Mama throughout the night. The next day in the sweatshop, Nikki thanks Frances for helping Lil’ Mama and returns her necklace. The ladies receive bad news that Frances was denied an appeal, Nikki’s children do not come to visit, and Wet gets a citation for creating a petition to end the prison’s harsh working conditions. Also, Aisha returns after recovering from being stabbed.

Frances, Nikki, Lil’ Mama, and Wet, now friends, sneak off to the kitchen where they share food and wine. They witness Dease secretly place a small bomb in the kitchen which goes off and alarms the other officers. As a result, Dease blamed the incident on the inmates and has the kitchen rebuilt. After placing the prison on lockdown, Nelson approaches Dease, angry about the explosion and Wet’s petition. Nelson states that he was informed that Dease created the explosion and threatens to fire Dease if he attempts any secret plans again.

During a cell search, Officer Banks enters Wet’s room and begins to damage her belongings, causing an altercation between Wet and Banks. Wet is taken to solitary confinement. When she returns, Wet and the other inmates collaborate and create another petition in a few days to present to Miller (Chris Dodson), a man that Nelson hopes will invest in the prison’s cheap labor. When Miller arrives to the workstation where the inmates are, Frances stands and reads the inmates’ demands for better working conditions and Nikki proceeds in giving the petition to Miller. Dease and Banks begin to hit Frances and Nikki and take them to solitary confinement where they stay for 6 days. During this period, they share stories and Frances helps Nikki overcome the temptation of snorting the cocaine that Dease takes to her room. They are let out and return to their routine. During a visit from her sister, Francis discovers that her daughter Maxine has been killed in a gang shooting.

After returning from suicide watch, Frances and the other inmates devise a plan to get back at Dease with the help from Michael and Aisha, who is fed up with Dease for beating her. While Lil’ Mama cleans Dease’s office, Aisha enters and seduces Dease, who kicks out Lil’ Mama and turns off the surveillance camera. After Lil’ Mama returns briefly and turns the camera back on, Aisha makes it appear as if Dease is raping her. Caught on video, the ladies plan on giving the evidence to the governor. When Lil’ Mama attempts to take the tape in Dease’s office, Dease harasses and rapes her. When she returns to the jail cell full of blood, the other inmates rush her to the infirmary where she has a miscarriage and dies. The inmates, who are violently upset, attack the doctor as he attempts to call Dease to have them escorted back to their jail cells. They hold the doctor at gunpoint and handcuff Michael to a chair. Wet shoots Dease as he enters and he in return fires a shot and hits the doctor. Nelson, informed of the situation, refuses to call the Governor for assistance and instead orders the officers to be ready at the scene. In the infirmary, the convicts release Michael, handcuff wounded Dease, and call Nelson, telling him he has one hour to get the Governor on the phone. Nelson demands to speak with Dease in order to ensure he is alive. The inmates put Dease on the phone and force him to tell Nelson that he raped Lil’ Mama. When her back is turned, Dease attacks Frances and Nikki shoots Dease several times, killing him. Sergeant Cervantes (MC Lyte), the officer in charge, orders the inmates to surrender and Wet goes outside and shoots an officer. She is shot in the chest and dies. After much thought, Frances and Nikki decide to exit the infirmary and are killed by the officers.

Meanwhile, Aisha sneaks into Dease’s office and retrieves the tape. During her final narration, Sabrina explains that after taking the evidence to a lawyer, the women file a lawsuit against the prison for their abuse and win the case. The prison is shut down and Nelson is indicted for making corrupt business deals and using the prison for his profit. Aisha is killed in a prison fight shortly after. Sabrina, now free, dedicates the inmates’ victory to Nikki, Francis, Lil’ Mama, and Wet for their courage.

Cast[link]

• Tichina Arnold as Aisha
• Monica Calhoun as Wet
• Da Brat as Sabrina
• Chris Dodson as Miller
• Jerry Foster as Doctor Moss
• LisaRaye McCoy as Frances
• Robert Lynn as Banks
• Reed McCant as Warden Nelson
• MC Lyte as Sergeant Cervantes
• Clifton Powell as Captain Alan Dease
• Mos Def as Michael
• Lark Voorhies as Lil’ Mama
• N’Bushe Wright as Nikki Barnes

Themes[link]

Prisons as business

Civil Brand’s most recognizable theme is the use of the prisoner for a means of profit. Director Neema Barnette sought to expose the elements of the prison industrial complex and its effect on the inmates within a prison. Using relatable characters, she shows the inmate’s perspective on working under harsh prison conditions in an attempt to persuade the audience to sympathize with the cast as they are exploited by the officers that run the prison. Neema Barnette replaces the idea rehabilitation, a concept that is commonly associated with the US prison system, with the idea of exploitation, which, as her depiction of Whitehead Correctional Institute portrays, has become the norm in many facilities. Because the main concept of the film was harmful to the reputation of US prisons, Neema Barnette stated that she had a difficult time having her film approved, which motivated Barnette to push forward with the film.^[3]

In order to carry out the idea of exploitation replacing rehabilitation, Barnette focuses on the interaction between characters Warden Nelson (Reed R. McCants) and Captain Dease 9Clifton Powell), the officials in charge of the prison. For example, Dease asks Nelson if the prison should be locked down after Aisha’s stabbing, to which Nelson responds that the prisoners must keep working.^[4] Rather than find the culprit who stabbed Aisha to ensure the future safety of the prisoners, Nelson prefers that the prisoners keep working in order to continue making money. The importance of making a profit has taken over the prison’s regulations and has caused the prison to be operated like a business at the expense of the prisoner’s rights. The prisoners, aware that they are being exploited for cheap labor, face harsh working conditions they refer to as “slave labor,” yet they are helpless because they have nobody to express their grievances to. In this film, the officers evidently place the business deal over the prisoners’ human rights as they go to great lengths to comfort Miller (Chris Dodson), a businessman that takes an interest in investing in the prison’s cheap labor. For example, when the prisoners attempt to protest the working conditions to Miller as he arrives to the workstation, Nelson does what he can to control the riot in order to salvage the possible business deal he has with Miller.^[4] Nelson hides the unhappiness of the inmates in order to provide his business partners with the guarantee that they are investing in a reliable source of labor. Neema Barnette’s characterization of Nelson and Dease reflects the growing issues surrounding the privatization of the prison system. She states in an interview that more companies are taking their business to prisons for a cheaper source of labor, leading to a limited source of jobs for American workers and the creation of regulations such as the three strikes law, which keeps prisoners in jail after their sentences.^[3] By incorporating this idea into her film Civil Brand, filmmakers attempts to raise the question: when is labor taken too far?

Man vs. woman

The female inmates struggle with the abuse by men in their previous lives prior to their crimes as well as inside the prison walls. The director depicts the man’s need for control over the woman by abusing her mentally and physically helps the audience favor the female inmates’ self-empowerment as they take control of their bodies and put an end to their mistreatment. Neema Barnette creates an idea that these women are battling against their male suppressors, creating an underlying feminist tone in the film.

Before they enter the prison walls, Neema Barnette portrays these women as the weak victims who were punished crimes provoked by the abuse from the men they were with. Frances was incarcerated for accidentally killing her husband in an effort to protect herself from his physical abuse, Lil’ Mama for killing her stepfather after being raped and impregnated, Nikki for stealing cars at the request of her boyfriend, and Wet for shooting her ex-boyfriend’s mistress. These women committed crimes that were in response to a man’s abuse of power and creates a sense that these women, although criminals, are innocent women who were manipulated and taken advantage of in a man’s world. As they attempt to stand up against their male opponents, Barnette demonstrates that these inmates were dismissed by the prison system and treated unequally.

A battle for authority and respect is created with a division between the men, who are officers holding a powerful position in the prison, and the women, who are the inmates subjected to abuse and harsh labor conditions. Because the officers of this film abuse the women and are the antagonists in this film, the men that play these roles are cast as the enemy against the female inmates who are depicted as helpless victims. When these women attempt to defend themselves, they are resisted and “put back in their place.” For example, when Nikki begs Dease not to take her back to solitary confinement after protesting a time-consuming job she was required to do, Dease forces her to state that she will be a “good bitch.”^[4] Forcing her to state these words creates a sense that Dease has obtained power over her and she is to follow his demands. Using physical and mental abuse, these women are taught to have a mentality that they are less of value than the men that control the prison.

Neema uses the character of Sergeant Cervantes (MC Lyte) to emphasize the importance of unity and trust amongst the female against their male officers. There is a feeling amongst the female inmates that Cervantes, also female, has betrayed them for their male enemies. Sabrina states that the inmates, who attempted to confide in Cervantes because she was a female, realized that she was not on their side and therefore not to be trusted.^[4] Cervantes is depicted as a character caught in between male in female enemies, fitting into neither role. Her masculine characteristics and lack of trust amongst the inmates demonstrates that she is on the male’s side, but the lack of respect that she receives from Dease and Nelson demonstrates that she does not share complete power with the males in the film.

Good inmate, bad cop

Irony plays a part in Civil Brand, as the roles typically seen in an actual prison are flipped during this film. Law enforcement, which is commonly viewed as a positive element of the community, takes on the opposite role in which they are portrayed as the antagonists who abuse their authority and exploit their prisoners. The criminals, who are commonly outlawed by society, are portrayed as the protagonists because they are the victims being abused. Because of this impression she gives in the film, Neema Brand persuades the audience to side in this case with the criminal as they “fight the system” to earn back their human rights. Michael Meadows, the new officer at Whitehead Correctional Institute, gives off a feeling of innocence since he has yet to be converted into an abusive cop like the other cops. His care for the inmates and lack of similarity to the other cops, who have many more years of experience, gives a sense that individuals who are given power learn to take advantage of it and the prison system has the ability to transform outsiders like Michael into abusers such as Dease and the other officers in this film.

Production[link]

Prior to shooting the film, director Neema Barnette researched the female prison complex in order to determine the style of inmates and film she wanted to create. She interviewed women inmates from Los Angeles and North Carolina, forced the actresses to go to prison to research their roles, and attempted to highlight the biggest issues that the inmates addressed regarding their abuse.^[3]

Neema struggled with finalizing the location for filming the movie because of the complex issues that she chose to address. Civil Brand was originally intended to be filmed in North Carolina but the original script was denied by North Carolina correction officials who were afraid of the message the film depicted about the prison complex.^[5] As a result, Neema Barnette was forced to eliminate disputed elements in the original script and submitted a watered-down script to Tennessee officials, who approved the new script and allowed filming to begin in December 2000 at the Tennessee State Penitentiary.^[5]

Once allowed to film, Barnette struggled with several production issues, including a smaller budget and restricted shooting schedule that was cut from 30 days to 15 days.^[6] After being shut down after 14 days of shooting, there were a total of 21 scenes missing from the film and Barnette waited for a year to receive extra shooting time only to receive 1 day, which was used to film 41 set-ups needed to piece the movie together.^[6] Lions Gate gave her a week to edit the final version of the film and in order to piece the scenes together and create fluidity, Barnette had Da Brat narrate more and cut out some original scenes she had.^[6] While filming, she used strategic camera techniques to hide missing elements of the film. Because of the reduced budget, Barnette was forced to shoot the cell block scenes in a static frame rather than complicated frames requiring a wheelchair camera, which she did not have.^[6] To hide the emptiness of the prison courtyard and lack of extras to play inmates, the director used camera techniques to section PU$$Y off one area of the courtyard and avoided shooting any reverse angles.^[6]

Awards[link]

Civil Brand won for awards and received one nomination. At the 2002 American Black Film Festival, director Neema Barnette received an award for Best Film and actor Clifton Powell won Best Performance by an Actor for his role as Captain Alan Dease.^[7] During an interview, Barnette stated that she was shocked to have received the award and it was amazing to be congratulated by her idols Robert Townsend, Keenen Ivory Wayans, and Chris Tucker.^[3]

At the 2002 Urbanworld Film Festival, Neema Barnette won an Audience Award and a Special Jury Prize for Civil Brand,^[7] where “she thanked Urbanworld for supporting independent cinema, hailing it as “the way of the future.’”^[8]

Mos Def received a nomination for Best Independent Actor at the 2003 Black Reel Awards for his role as Michael Meadows. The awards went to actor Eriq La Salle for his role in Crazy as Hell, and actress Erika Alexander for her role in 30 Years to Life.^[9]

Release dates[link]

Civil Brand was first premiered at the American Black Film Festival on May 26, 2002 and released by Lions Gate Films in limited theatres on August 29, 2003.^[10] Besides its premiere at the American Black Film Festival, during 2002, the movie was shown at the Urbanworld Film Festival on August 9 and at the AFI Film Festival on November 10.^[11] During 2003, Civil Brand made an appearance at the Sundance Film Festival in January and the Pan African Film Festival on February 6.^[11] After 20 months of making an appearance at film festivals and in theaters, on January 27, 2004, the movie was released on DVD, which included “an audio commentary running throughout the film that features the film’s director Neema Barnette and Writer Joyce Reece.”^[12]

Reviews[link]

The film received generally negative evaluations by critics despite the positivity it received at film festivals and in audience reviews. Rotten Tomatoes tallied a total of 16 out of 19 critic reviews not in favor of the film and a total of 3.8 starts out of 10, for an overall score of 16% on the tomatometer to be positive.^[13] Critics on Yahoo!Movies gave the film an overall grade of C- as opposed to users who gave the film an overall B- grade.^[14] The film was also given an overall score of 29 out of 100 based on the reviews from 13 critics ranging from the Chicago Reader to the Los Angeles Times.^[15]

Amongst the negative comments given, critics targeted Da Brat’s narration, the cast’s acting skills, and the indirect focus on the main issue of exploitation. They point out that this film is too similar to other films done in the past and that the filmmakers do a bad job of focusing the audience’s attention the main issue of prison exploitation by instead pursuing the inmates’ revenge against Clifton Powell’s character, Dease.^[16] While some cast members have positive performances, critics point out that they are masked by the overacting by other characters.^[16] Critics were also bothered by the narration of Da Brat’s character Sabrina, which they felt was unnatural and “gives the film a comedic tone, but Civil Brand doesn't want to be a comedy; it wants to be a thought-provoking message movie.”^[17]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Civil Brand at the Internet Movie Database
• Civil Brand at AllRovi
• Civil Brand at Rotten Tomatoes

Andrew Sullivan
Sullivan in August 2006
Born	Andrew Michael Sullivan (1963-08-10) 10 August 1963 (age 48) South Godstone, Surrey, England
Nationality	British
Alma mater	Magdalen College, Oxford Harvard University
Occupation	Writer, editor, blogger
Influenced by	Michael Oakeshott, George Orwell, Arthur Koestler, Margaret Thatcher, Edmund Burke, Ronald Reagan[1]
Religion	Roman Catholicism
Spouse	Aaron Tone (m. 2007) «start: (2007)»"Marriage: Aaron Tone to Andrew Sullivan" Location: (linkback:http://en-wiki.pop.wn.com/index.php/Andrew_Sullivan)
Website
andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com

Andrew Michael Sullivan (born 10 August 1963) is a British author, editor, political commentator and blogger. He describes himself as a political conservative.^[2] He has focused on American political life.

Sullivan is a speaker at universities, colleges, and civic organizations in the United States. He has been a guest on national news and political commentary television shows in the United States and Europe. Born and raised in England, he has lived in the United States since 1984 and currently resides in Washington, D.C. and Provincetown, Massachusetts. He is an openly gay Catholic.^[3]

Sullivan is a former editor of The New Republic and the author of five books. He is perhaps best known as the author and editor of his blog, The Dish, which mainly focuses on political issues.

Personal life[link]

Sullivan was born in South Godstone, Surrey, England, to a Roman Catholic family of Irish descent,^[4] and was brought up in the nearby town of East Grinstead, West Sussex. He was educated at Reigate Grammar School,^[5] and studied at Magdalen College, Oxford, where he was awarded a first-class degree Bachelor of Arts in modern history and modern languages.^[6] In his second year, he was elected president of the Oxford Union, holding the office in Trinity term 1983, although criticised for his tactics in founding a university society as a vehicle for his electoral ambitions by Boris Johnson.

Sullivan earned a Master in Public Administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University,^[7] followed by a PhD on government from Harvard, his dissertation being on the conservative British philosopher Michael Oakeshott.^[8]

Sullivan, in 2003, wrote a Salon article identifying himself as a member of the gay "bear community".^[9] On 27 August 2007, Sullivan married his husband Aaron Tone in Provincetown, Massachusetts.^[10][11][12]

Sullivan had a long-expressed desire to become a U.S. citizen, but was barred for many years from applying for citizenship because of his HIV-positive status.^[13][14] Following the statutory and administrative repeals of the HIV immigration ban in 2008 and 2009, respectively, Sullivan announced his intention to begin the process of becoming a permanent U.S. resident and citizen.^[15][16] On the episode of The Chris Matthews Show of 16 April 2011, Sullivan confirmed that he is now a United States Permanent Resident, showing his United States Permanent Resident Card (aka Green Card).^[17]

Editor and writer[link]

In 1986, Sullivan began his career with The New Republic magazine, serving as its editor from 1991 to 1996.^[6] In that position, he expanded the magazine from its traditional roots in political coverage to cultural issues and the politics surrounding them. During this time, the magazine produced some groundbreaking journalism but courted several high-profile controversies.

In 1994, Sullivan published excerpts on race and intelligence from Richard Herrnstein and Charles Murray's controversial The Bell Curve, which argued that some of the measured difference in IQ scores between racially defined groups was the result of genetic inheritance. Almost the entire editorial staff of the magazine threatened to resign if material that they considered racist was published.^[18] In order to appease them, Sullivan included lengthy rebuttals from 19 writers and contributors. Sullivan has continued to speak approvingly of the research and arguments presented in The Bell Curve: "the book... still holds up as one of the most insightful and careful of the last decade. The fact of human inequality and the subtle and complex differences between various manifestations of being human — gay, straight, male, female, black, Asian — is a subject worth exploring, period."^[19]

Sullivan began writing for The New York Times Magazine in 1998, but was fired by editor Adam Moss in 2002 under instructions from executive editor Howell Raines. Jack Shafer writes in Slate magazine that he asked Moss via e-mail to explain this decision, but that his e-mails went unanswered, adding that Sullivan was not fully forthcoming on the subject. Sullivan wrote on his blog that he was told that his presence at the Times made Raines "uncomfortable", but defended Raines's right to sack him. Sullivan suggested that Raines had fired him in response to his criticism of the Times on his blog, and acknowledged that he had expected that his criticisms would eventually anger Raines.^[20]

Blogging[link]

In late 2000, Sullivan began his blog, The Daily Dish. By the middle of 2003, it was receiving about 300,000 unique visits per month. Between starting his blog and ending his New Republic editorship, Sullivan wrote two works on homosexuality, arguing for its social acceptance on libertarian grounds. His writing appears in a number of widely-read publications. He currently serves as a columnist for The Sunday Times of London.

The core principles of Sullivan's blog have been the style of conservatism he views as traditional. This includes fiscal conservatism, limited government, and classic libertarianism on social issues. Sullivan opposes government involvement with respect to sexual and consensual matters between adults, such as the use of marijuana and prostitution. Sullivan believes recognition of same-sex marriage is a civil-rights issue but is willing to promote it on a state-by-state legislative federalism basis, rather than trying to judicially impose the change.^[21] Most of Sullivan's disputes with other conservatives have been over social issues, such as these, and the handling of postwar Iraq.

Sullivan gives out "awards" each year on various public statements that parody those of people the awards are named after. Throughout the year, "nominees" for these awards are mentioned in various blog posts. The readers of his blog vote the "winner" at the end of the year. These awards include:^[22]

• the Hugh Hewitt Award, introduced in June 2008 and named after a man Sullivan describes as an 'absurd partisan fanatic', is for the most egregious attempts to label 2008 Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama as un-American, alien, treasonous, and far out of the mainstream of American life and politics.
• the John Derbyshire Award is for egregious and outlandish comments on gays, women, and minorities.
• the Paul Begala Award is for extreme liberal hyperbole.
• the Michelle Malkin Award is named after blogger Michelle Malkin. It is for shrill, hyperbolic, divisive and intemperate right-wing rhetoric. (Ann Coulter is ineligible for this award so that, in Sullivan's own words, "Other people will have a chance.")
• the Michael Moore Award is named after film-maker Michael Moore. It is for divisive, bitter and intemperate left-wing rhetoric.
• the Matthew Yglesias Award is for writers, politicians, columnists or pundits who actually criticize their own side, make enemies among political allies, and generally risk something for the sake of saying what they believe.
• the "Poseur Alert" is awarded for passages of prose that stand out for pretension, vanity and really bad writing designed to look like profundity.
• the "Von Hoffman Award" is for stunningly wrong cultural, political and social predictions.

In February 2007, Sullivan took his blog from TIME to the Atlantic Monthly magazine, where he had accepted an editorial post. Since then, his presence has increased traffic by 30% for Atlantic's website.^[23]

In 2009, The Daily Dish won The 2008 Weblog Award for Best Blog.^[24]

In April 2010, Sullivan was reported to be considering giving up his blog. However, Sullivan stated that he would continue blogging if he could obtain an extra staffer.^[25]

Sullivan left The Atlantic to begin blogging at The Daily Beast in April 2011.^[26]

Politics[link]

Sullivan describes himself as a conservative and is the author of The Conservative Soul. He supports a broad range of traditional conservative positions. He favors a flat tax, limited government, privatization of social security, and opposes welfare state programs and interventionism. However, on a number of controversial public issues, including same-sex marriage, the conduct of torture in the US, and capital punishment, he takes a position typically shared by those on the left of the U.S. political spectrum. His position on abortion is mixed; he says that he personally finds it immoral and favors overturning Roe v. Wade, but can accept legal abortions in the first trimester.

Sullivan supported George W. Bush in the 2000 election.^[27] In 2004, Sullivan reluctantly decided to support John Kerry's presidential campaign, due to his dissatisfaction with the handling of the postwar situation in Iraq by the Bush administration, their views on gay rights, and their fiscal policy. In 2006, he supported the Democratic Party. Sullivan (like a number of other conservatives) endorsed Senator Barack Obama for the Democratic Nomination in the 2008 U.S. Presidential Election, and Rep. Ron Paul for the Republican nomination. Sullivan endorsed Obama for President on the eve of the election.^[28] Sullivan has declared support for Arnold Schwarzenegger^[29] and other like-minded Republicans, and written sympathetically about Republican congressman Ron Paul, whom he endorsed for the 2008 and 2012 Republican presidential nomination.^[30][31]

In January 2009, Tunku Varadarajan, Elisabeth Eaves and Hana R. Alberts, writing in Forbes magazine, ranked Sullivan #19 on a list of "The 25 Most Influential Liberals In The U.S. Media", writing that "he clings unconvincingly to the 'conservative' label even after his fervent endorsement of Obama. His advocacy for gay marriage rights and his tendency to view virtually everything through a 'gay' prism puts him at odds with many on the right."^[32]

Sullivan rejected the "liberal" label, on the grounds that he supports a flat tax, rejects progressive taxation as unjust and counter-productive, is skeptical of universal healthcare and supports a free market in healthcare and pharmaceuticals, strongly supports "fighting a war against Jihadist terror", and therefore does not meet Forbes magazine's own criteria for a "liberal", which include support for progressive taxation and universal healthcare and "a certain queasiness about the war on terror." He argued that Forbes writers, including Tunku Varadarajan, whom he called "smart and decent", consider him a liberal because he is "openly and proudly gay" and because "conservatism has become a religious movement" while he does "not believe that any specific form of religion has a veto in determining who is or is not a political conservative in a secular society."^[33]

LGBT issues[link]

Sullivan has largely supported a liberal definition of gay rights, which he articulated in his book Virtually Normal. In it, Sullivan examines and criticizes mainstream liberal, conservative, and the "prohibitionist" (far right) and "liberationist" (far left) political views on homosexuality. He argues for a policy that supports privacy rights and equal government treatment, but does not support private sector anti-discrimination laws.

Sullivan has been critical of civil unions, which he has dubbed "marriage lite." He has argued that civil unions will only serve to weaken the unique status of marriage, not only for gays and lesbians, but also for heterosexuals.

In the 2004 election, Sullivan criticized the Republican Party for what he saw as its political exploitation of a despised minority:

I've been trying to think of what to say about what appears to be the enormous success the Republicans had in using gay couples' rights to gain critical votes in key states. In eight more states now, gay couples have no relationship rights at all. Their legal ability to visit a spouse in hospital, to pass on property, to have legal protections for their children has been gutted. If you are a gay couple living in Alabama, you know one thing: your family has no standing under the law; and it can and will be violated by strangers. I'm not surprised by this. When you put a tiny and despised minority up for a popular vote, the minority usually loses.^[34]

In 2001, it came to light that Sullivan had posted online anonymous advertisements for unprotected anal sex, preferably with "other HIV-positive men".^[35] Liberal gay critics took Sullivan to task for this in light of his public statements that the AIDS crisis was over,^[36] and for having criticised President Clinton's "incautious behaviour".^[37] This criticism was in turn objected to by Salon's Cliff Rothman, who argued that it was a violation of Sullivan's privacy to publish information about his sex life, and that Sullivan's critics were attempting to punish him for his political views.^[38]

While he has long advocated same-sex marriage, Sullivan has drawn criticism for his 2006 doubts on monogamy:^[39][40][41]

For me the interesting point came when Dan and I agreed that moderate hypocrisy — especially in marriages — is often the best policy. Momogamy [sic] is very hard for men, straight or gay, and if one partner falters occasionally (and I don't mean regularly), sometimes discretion is perfectly acceptable. You could see Jong bridle at the thought of such dishonesty. But I think the post-seventies generation — those of us who grew up while our parents were having a sexual revolution — both appreciate the gains for sexual and emotional freedom, while being a little more aware of their potential hazards.^[42]

Sullivan opposes hate crime laws, arguing that they undermine freedom of speech and equal protection.^[43] He also opposes the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, arguing that it will, "not make much of a difference" and stated that the "gay rights establishment" was wrong to oppose a version of the bill that did not include gender identity.^[44]

War on terror[link]

Sullivan supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United States, and was initially hawkish in the war on terror, arguing that weakness would embolden terrorists. Immediately following the September 11 attacks in 2001, he wrote a controversial essay for The Sunday Times, in which he stated, "The middle part of the country — the great red zone that voted for Bush — is clearly ready for war. The decadent Left in its enclaves on the coasts is not dead — and may well mount what amounts to a fifth column."^[45] In an 14 October 2001 post, Sullivan announced that recent anthrax attacks had sealed his support for war on Iraq, including the possible use of nuclear weaponry by the United States.

However, Sullivan harshly criticized the Bush administration for its prosecution of the wars, especially regarding the numbers of troops, protection of munitions, and treatment of prisoners. Sullivan strongly opposes the use of torture against detainees in U.S. custody and has had heated disputes with Heather Mac Donald^[46] and fellow British-American John Derbyshire, among others, on that issue. Though Sullivan believes that enemy combatants in the war on terror should not be given status as prisoners of war because "terrorists are not soldiers,"^[47] he believes that the U.S. government must abide by the rules of war — in particular, Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions — when dealing with such detainees.^[48]

In recent times, Andrew Sullivan has changed his position on the Iraq war and described it as a mistake. On 27 October 2006 edition of Real Time with Bill Maher, he described conservatives and Republicans who refused to admit they had been wrong to support the Iraq War as "cowards." On 26 February 2008 he wrote on his blog: "After 9/11, I was clearly blinded by fear of al Qaeda and deluded by the overwhelming military superiority of the US and the ease of democratic transitions in Eastern Europe into thinking we could simply fight our way to victory against Islamist terror. I wasn't alone. But I was surely wrong."^[49]

Sullivan authored an opinion piece featured as the cover article of the October 2009 edition of The Atlantic magazine ("Dear President Bush").^[50] This piece called upon former President Bush to take personal responsibility for the incidents and practices of torture that occurred during his administration as part of the "War on Terror".

On Israel[link]

Sullivan states that he has "always been a Zionist".^[51] However, in February 2009, Sullivan wrote that he could no longer take neo-conservatism seriously:^[52]

[N]eo-conservatism, in large part, is simply about enabling the most irredentist elements in Israel and sustaining a permanent war against anyone or any country who disagrees with the Israeli right [...] But America is not Israel. And once that distinction is made, much of the neoconservative ideology collapses.

In January 2010, Sullivan blogged that he is "moving toward" the idea of "a direct American military imposition" of a two state solution on Israel, with NATO troops enforcing "the borders of the new states of Palestine and Israel". He commented, "I too am sick of the Israelis [...] I’m sick of having a great power like the US being dictated to".^[53] His post was criticized by Noah Pollak of Commentary, who referred to it as "crazy", "heady stuff" based on "hubris".^[54]

In February 2010, Leon Wieseltier in The New Republic suggested that his former friend and colleague Sullivan had a "venomous hostility toward Israel and Jews", and was "either a bigot, or just moronically insensitive" towards the Jewish people.^[55] Sullivan rejected the accusation, and was defended by some writers, while others at least partly supported Wieseltier.^[56]

War on drugs[link]

Sullivan has written blog entries criticizing the excesses of the War on Drugs. He argued that studies showed alcohol is more dangerous than cannabis, yet the former is legal and the latter is illegal.^[57][58] He gave examples purporting to show that the government has used torture in the War on Drugs.^[59] Regarding the cannabis prohibition, he wrote,

For my part, I find the attempt to ban any naturally growing plant to be an attack on reality, and a denial of some of the most basic freedoms. I guess that's why today's GOP is so in favor of it.^[60]

On 13 July 2009, Sullivan was ticketed within the Cape Cod National Seashore for possession of marijuana, but the case was dismissed the following month.^[61] This has led to accusations of preferential treatment.^[62]

Iran[link]

Sullivan devoted a significant amount of blog space to covering the allegations of fraud and related protests after the 2009 Iranian presidential election. Francis Wilkinson of The Week stated that Sullivan’s “coverage — and that journalism term takes on new meaning here — of the uprising in Iran was nothing short of extraordinary. ‘Revolutionary’ might be a better word.”^[63]

Sullivan was inspired by the Iranian people’s reactions to the election results and used his blog as a hub of information. He repeatedly spoke of the significance of the moment in history. Among them:

This is an immense story of human freedom in a critical part of the world. After Obama's election, it is the biggest event in world history this year. And letting these courageous protestors know that we are with them is vital. Telling the world of their integrity and bravery against the thuggery of these theocratic despots is God's work. The blogosphere can lead the way, but the MSM is catching on.^[64]

Because of the media blackout in Iran, Iranian Twitter accounts were a large source of information. Sullivan frequently quoted and linked to Nico Pitney of The Huffington Post.^[65]

Sarah Palin[link]

Sullivan has been a vocal critic of former Alaska governor Sarah Palin since John McCain named her as his running mate in 2008. During an appearance on Real Time with Bill Maher on 18 September 2008, Sullivan called Palin's nomination "a joke and a farce" and "something that should be dismissed out of hand as the most irresponsible act any candidate has ever made in the history of this country." He frequently accused John McCain of poor judgment in his selection and his campaign of inadequate vetting of her.^[66][67]

In August, 2008, Sullivan wrote on his blog about a widespread rumor circulating on the Internet that Palin faked her fifth pregnancy, the baby was actually her daughter's, and that this was motivated by political reasons.^[68] After a photograph surfaced in which she appeared to be pregnant in the appropriate time period,^[69] Sullivan admitted that she was most likely pregnant, but "not in the last year" and continued with questions about whether she actually gave birth to the child.^[70] Politico called him "a man possessed" in his support for the theory, noting intensive coverage of the issue in his blog over a short period.^[71] The Wall Street Journal reported that according to people familiar with discussions among Palin's advisers, Palin considered a libel suit against him over the issue, but eventually decided against it.^[72]

Sullivan contends that Palin is a habitual liar, which he has chronicled in a series entitled “The Odd Lies of Sarah Palin.” As of 30 June 2009, Sullivan has claimed that his blog had refuted 29 public statements made by Palin. Of Sullivan’s perceived “odd lies” of Palin, he states on his blog:

But I did learn of several new odd lies – in the same classic pattern of categorically denying things that are categorically and patently and verifiably true. This is not, as this blog noted in the campaign, the typical political lie, the Clintonian parsing of truth or lying when the truth cannot easily be discovered. It is the statement that it is night when it is clearly, by universal aggreement [sic], three o'clock in the afternoon.^[67]

Religion[link]

Sullivan identifies himself as a faithful Catholic while disagreeing with some aspects of the Vatican's position. In Virtually Normal (ISBN 0-679-42382-6), he argues that the Bible forbids same-sex sexual activity only when it is linked to prostitution or pagan ritual. During an appearance on Real Time with Bill Maher on 19 September 2008, Sullivan described himself as a "religious secularist", and challenged Maher on criticisms of religion and people of faith, saying, "To dismiss all religious people based on the actions of the most literalist dumb ones, I think is bigotry."

His views led him to have concerns about the election of Pope Benedict XVI. In Time Magazine for 24 April 2005 in an article entitled, "The Vicar of Orthodoxy", Sullivan stated his criticisms of the new pope.^[73] He expressed his view that the current pope is opposed to the modern world and women's rights, and deems gays and lesbians to be innately disposed to evil. He has, however, agreed with Benedict's assertion that reason is an integral element of faith.

Sullivan takes a moderate approach to religion; as such he vocally rejects fundamentalism of any kind, including both fundamentalist Christianity and Islam, and describes himself as a "dogged defender of pluralism and secularism". He defended religious moderates in a series of exchanges with atheist Sam Harris in which Harris maintained that religious moderates provide cover for fundamentalists and make it impossible for anyone to effectively oppose them.^[74]

In a blog entry on 12 March 2009, Sullivan summarised his faith journey to date in this way:

Perhaps the institution dearest to me, the Catholic church, greeted the emergence of gay people in a way that never truly reflected the compassion of Jesus or the good faith arguments many of us offered as a way forward. This was sad to me, but not life-changing. I know the Holy Spirit takes time, as James Alison reminds us. But then came the sex abuse crisis. Like many others, the truth about the evil in the heart of the church, and the cooptation and enabling of that evil, and the refusal to take real responsibility for the evil, simply left me gasping for air. I realize now that my Catholic identity never recovered, even if my faith endures in a far more modest and difficult way.^[75]

Works[link]

As author

• Virtually Normal: An Argument About Homosexuality (1995). Knopf. ISBN 0-679-42382-6.
• Love Undetectable: Notes on Friendship, Sex and Survival (1998). Knopf. ISBN 0-679-45119-6.
• The Conservative Soul: How We Lost It, How to Get It Back (2006). HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-018877-4.
• Intimations Pursued: The Voice of Practice in the Conversation of Michael Oakeshott (2007). Imprint Academic. ISBN 978-0-907845-28-7

As editor

• Same-Sex Marriage Pro & Con: A Reader (1997). Vintage. ISBN 0-679-77637-0. First edition
• Same-Sex Marriage Pro & Con: A Reader (2004) . Vintage. ISBN 1-4000-7866-0. Second edition
• The View From Your Window: The world as seen by readers of one blog (2009). Blurb.com

References[link]

External links[link]

• The Dish, Andrew Sullivan's blog at The Daily Beast
• Column archive (2009-2009) at The Atlantic
  • Why I Blog, November 2008
• Appearances on C-SPAN
  • Booknotes interview with Sullivan on Virtually Normal, 1 October 1995.
  • C-SPAN Q&A interview with Sullivan, 15 October 2006
• Andrew Sullivan on Charlie Rose
• Andrew Sullivan at the Internet Movie Database
• Works by or about Andrew Sullivan in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Andrew Sullivan collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• World’s Best Blogger?, Harvard Magazine, May–June 2011

Dambisa Moyo

Field	Macroeconomics, International development, Global affairs
Alma mater	Oxford University (Doctorate) Harvard University (MPA) American University (BS, MBA)

Dr. Dambisa Moyo is an international economist and New York Times best-selling author of both Dead Aid: Why Aid is Not Working and How There is a Better Way For Africa,^[1] published in 2009, and How the West Was Lost: Fifty Years of Economic Folly - And the Stark Choices that Lie Ahead, published in 2011.^[2] Moyo's 3rd book Winner Take All: China's Race for Resources and What It Means for the World will be published in June 2012.^[3]

Biography[link]

Moyo was born and raised in Lusaka, Zambia.^[4] She holds a Doctorate (PhD) in Economics from St Antony's College, Oxford University; her 2002 dissertation is titled "Essays on the determinants of the components of savings in developing countries".^[5] In 1997, Moyo earned a Master of Public Administration (MPA) from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.^[6] She also earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Finance and Bachelor of Science (BS) in Chemistry from American University in Washington D.C. She worked for the World Bank as a Consultant and at Goldman Sachs where she worked in the debt capital markets and as an economist in the global macroeconomics team.

On March 14, 2011, Moyo spoke at the annual Observance ceremony marking Commonwealth Day in Westminster Abbey. She spoke on "Women as Agents of Change" in the presence of the Queen Elizabeth II, British Prime Minister David Cameron and 2000 guests.^[7] In the same month The Daily Beast also selected Moyo as one of "150 Extraordinary Women Who Shake The World" along with Hillary Clinton, Madeleine Albright and others.^[8]

Awards and memberships[link]

In 2009, Moyo was honoured by the World Economic Forum as one of its Young Global Leaders.^[9] In 2009 TIME Magazine named Moyo as one of the world's 100 most influential people.^[10] In September 2009 Moyo was featured in Oprah Winfrey's power list of 20 remarkable visionaries.^[11] In 2010, Dambisa Moyo was a participant at the Bilderberg Conference.^[12] Moyo gave the keynote address at PIMCO's 2011 Secular Forum.^[13]

Moyo serves on the board of Barclays Bank,^[14] SABMiller,^[15] and Barrick Gold.^[16] She has done numerous speaking engagements at organizations including: OECD, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Council on Foreign Relations, American Enterprise Institute and the 2009 Munk Debates as well as most of the G7 countries. In 2009 she spoke at the TEDx conference at the EU Parliament.^[17]

Moyo is a regular contributor to financial journals such as The Economist^[18] and Financial Times^[19] and has appeared as a guest on networks such as CNN,^[20][21] CNBC,^[22][23] Bloomberg^[24], BBC^[25] and Fox Business.^[26] She is a Patron of Absolute Return for Kids (ARK),^[27] a hedge fund supported children’s charity.

Bibliography[link]

[edit] Winner Take All

Moyo's 3rd book Winner Take All: China's Race for Resources and What It Means for the World will be published in June 2012. The book examines the commodity dynamics that the world will face over the next several decades. In particular, the implications of China's rush for resources across all regions of the world. With the scale of China’s resource campaign for hard commodities (metals and minerals) and soft commodities (timber and food) being one of the the largest in history, Moyo presents her research of the financial and geopolitical implications of this in a world of diminishing resources and argues that we are in the middle of unprecedented times.^[28].

The book has praise from commodity trader and author Jim Rogers who says "[The book] offers a smart primer for investors looking to make sense of the opportunities and risks in the commodity space today...I am afraid the West is going to wake up too late to prepare for the future."^[29], Barrick Gold founder Peter Munk who says "Ms Moyo sheds light on and makes sense of a profound and dramatic moment in our history. Her book is a must-read."^[30] and Eurasia Group President Ian Bremmer who says "[The book] offers a timely and provocative answer...at a crucial moment for the future of the global economy."^[31]

Kirkus Reviews states "Written to clarify important global questions, this book deserves a wide audience."^[32]

[edit] How The West Was Lost

Moyo’s second book entitled How the West Was Lost: Fifty Years of Economic Folly - And the Stark Choices that Lie Ahead offers an account of the decline of the economic supremacy of the West over the past 50 years. In particular, Moyo examines how America’s flawed decisions and blinkered policies choices around Capital, Labour and Technology – key ingredients for economic growth and success - have resulted in an economic and geo-political seesaw that is now poised to tip in favour of the emerging world.

It became a New York Times bestseller, debuting at #6 in its first week.^[33] It also debuted at #4 in the Washington Post^[34] and #2 in the Wall Street Journal.^[35] The book also had success in Canada, peaking at #4 and remaining on the bestseller list for 6 weeks.^[36]

In a review, Paul Collier states that "her diagnosis of the recent disasters in financial markets is succinct and sophisticated"^[37] and continues "I applaud her brave alarum against our economic and social complacency: her core concerns are sufficiently close to painful truths to warrant our attention."^[37] Dominic Lawson writes in The Times "This argument...can rarely have been made more concisely...Moyo is a very serious lady indeed."^[38] The Independent says "the sad saga of the recession gives legs to Dambisa Moyo’s provocatively-entitled book, for it goes to the heart of the great economic issue of our times: how swiftly will power shift over this century?".^[39] The Guardian says "How the West Was Lost is more interesting, wider in scale and more important than Dead Aid".^[40]

Bloomberg summarizes "[The book] offers up a well-reasoned look at how the world’s most-advanced nations are squandering their economic lead — and how they might survive by fighting Chinese fire with fire….The book offers Western politicians a prescription for stopping the rot."^[41] Bloomberg named it one of their top business books of 2011.^[42]

In contrast, Alan Beattie of the Financial Times says "The challenges it identifies are for the most part real, if not original. But the huge flaws of the emerging economies are ignored." ^[43] The Economist says "these arguments need much better supporting material than the book provides".^[44]

Ireland's Sunday Business Post says "Moyo’s analysis of the fundamental underpinnings of the credit crunch, especially the role of leveraging, is ... nuanced and insightful".^[45]

[edit] Dead Aid

Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There is Another Way for Africa argues that foreign aid has harmed Africa and that it should be phased out.^[46] It became a New York Times bestseller. It is published in Chinese, English, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese and Dutch.

The book offers proposals for developing countries to finance development, instead of relying on foreign aid. Moyo has stated that her arguments are based on those made by pro-market economists like Peter Bauer (to whom the book is dedicated)^[47] and, later, William Easterly.^[48] The Financial Times summarized the book's argument: "Limitless development assistance to African governments, she argues, has fostered dependency, encouraged corruption and ultimately perpetuated poor governance and poverty."^[49] She argues that foreign aid helps perpetuate the cycle of poverty and hinders economic growth in Africa.

Harvard professor and historian Niall Ferguson wrote the foreword to Dead Aid. Quotes by the Chairman and CEO of Forbes, Steve Forbes, appear on the book jacket as well as by former United Nations Secretary-General Mr. Kofi Annan who says "Dambisa Moyo makes a compelling case for a new approach to Africa".

Moyo's ideas are similar to those held by the Rwandan Government and President Paul Kagame. He says that "Dead Aid has given us an accurate evaluation of the aid culture today".^[50] Kagame also invited Moyo to Rwanda to discuss her thesis and bought copies of the book for his entire cabinet.^[48][51] The President of Senegal, Abdoulaye Wade has also expressed similar views on aid.^[48]

The thesis has also been noted by the Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao. Speaking at a China-Africa Cooperation summit in Egypt, he said "I have read a book titled Dead Aid written by Dambisa Moyo. The author talks about her personal experiences and draws the conclusion that China's assistance to Africa is sincere, credible, practical and efficient and is welcomed by the African people. I am confident that time will prove that friendship and cooperation between the Chinese and African people has a bright future."^[52]

In a book review, economist Paul Collier calls Moyo's analysis "over-optimistic" in that "She implies that, were aid cut, African governments would respond by turning to other sources of finance that would make them more accountable." According to Collier, "this exaggerates the opportunity for alternative finance and underestimates the difficulties African societies face." ^[53] David Roodman, a research fellow at the Center for Global Development calls the book "sporadically footnoted, selective in its use of facts, sloppy, simplistic, illogical, and stunningly naive",^[54] while the Financial Times notes that the book "studiously ignores evidence of development assistance working".^[49]

The pro-aid organization ONE has claimed that Dead Aid is "reckless" and that it calls to "cut-off all aid".^[55] Moyo points out in a number of interviews that this is a misrepresentation of her ideas^[56] and the Financial Times notes that ONE's campaign "at least partially backfired".^[49]

The economist Jeffrey Sachs has said more foreign aid is needed to improve conditions for Africa^[57] but Moyo points out that when Sachs was her lecturer at Harvard it was he himself who taught that "the path to long-term development would only be achieved through private sector involvement and free market solutions".^[58]

Publications[link]

• Moyo, Dambisa (2012). Winner Take All: China's Race for Resources and What It Means for the World. New York: Basic Books. ISBN 0-465-02828-4. 
• Moyo, Dambisa (2011). How the West Was Lost: Fifty Years of Economic Folly - And the Stark Choices that Lie Ahead. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 0-374-17325-7. 
• Moyo, Dambisa (2009). Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There is Another Way for Africa. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 0-374-13956-3. 

• Financial Times (Feb 6th 2012) : "Capitalism for Africa"^[59]
• Change This Manifesto (Mar 10th 2011) : "A Call Against Complacency"^[60]
• The New York Times (Mar 1st 2011) : "How to Get America Back on Track"^[61]
• The Times (Jan 17th 2011) : "The country faces a dramatic choice: sink or swim"^[62]
• Barron's (Nov 28th 2010) : "Holding Housing's Head Above Water"^[63]
• Aberdeen Asset Management (Nov 2010) : "America's Hobson's Choice" ^[64]
• Financial Times (Jan 30th 2010): "The Diary: Dambisa Moyo"^[65]
• The Economist (Nov 13th 2009): "The lure of Africa: Bond markets will discover its attractions"^[18]
• Financial Times (Jun 1st 2009): "Little appetite to question the aid-based status quo"^[66]
• Foreign Policy (Apr 21st 2009): "The Next Big Thing: Africa"^[67]
• Wall Street Journal (Mar 21st 2009): "Why Foreign Aid Is Hurting Africa"^[68]
• Financial Times (Feb 28th 2009): "The Diary: Dambisa Moyo"^[69]
• The Guardian (Feb 26th 2009): "Capitalism for Africa"^[70]

References[link]

External links[link]

• dambisamoyo.com, Moyo's official website
• Facebook Fan page, Moyo's official Facebook fan page
• Jake Whitney in Guernica Magazine interviews Moyo
• Allan Stevo at LewRockwell.com reviews Moyo's Dead Aid.
• "Africa with Dambisa Moyo" link to Uncommon Knowledge interview filmed 12 June 2009
• Dambisa Moyo on Twitter
• Dambisa Moyo Interview May 2010
• C-SPAN Q&A interview with Moyo, April 5, 2009

Simon Anholt is an independent policy advisor who helps national, regional and city governments develop and implement strategies for enhanced economic, political and cultural engagement with other countries. These strategies are typically in the areas of national identity and reputation, public diplomacy, economic competitiveness, cultural relations, regional integration, export promotion, tourism, security, foreign direct investment, sustainability, talent attraction and major international events. He is best known for his work on the image and reputation of countries, cities and regions.

He is the founder and publisher of the global annual research studies: Anholt-GfK Roper Nation Brands Index, Anholt-GfK Roper City Brands Index and Anholt-GfK Roper State Brands Index, three major surveys which use a panel of almost 30,000 people in 25 countries to monitor global perceptions of 50 countries, 50 cities and the 52 States of the Union.

Anholt was a member of the UK Foreign Office’s Public Diplomacy Board between 2000 and 2010^[1], has participated in sessions at the World Economic Forum^[2] and has advised institutions including the UN World Tourism Organisation, the World Union of Olympic Cities^[3], the European Travel Commission^[4], and the European Conference on Public Communication^[5]

Awards[link]

Anholt is a Parliamentarian of the European Cultural Parliament. He was awarded the "Nobels Colloquia Prize for Leadership in Economics and Management", not to be confused with the Nobel Prize, in 2009 and the Prix d'Excellence du Forum Multiculturel pour un Développement Durable (Award for Excellence in Sustainable Development), at the 7th Multicultural Forum at the Palais de la Découverte, Paris, in 2010.^{[citation needed]}

Writing[link]

He is the author of the book, Another One Bites The Grass, and Editor of the quarterly journal, Place Branding and Public Diplomacy. His book on the role of brands in economic development, Brand New Justice, was first published in 2003. He is a co-author of Beyond Branding (Kogan Page 2003), Brands and Branding (The Economist 2003), Heritage and Identity – Shaping the Nations of the North (Donhead 2002) and Destination Marketing (Butterworth Heinemann 2001/2003/2009). His more recent books are Brand America, (Cyan Books 2004 and 2009); Competitive Identity: the New Brand Management for Nations, Cities and Regions, (Palgrave Macmillan 2007); and Places: Image, Identity and Reputation (Palgrave Macmillan 2010).

Bibliography[link]

• Anholt, Simon (2010-01-23). Places: Identity, Image and Reputation. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-230-23977-7. 
• Anholt, Simon (2007-01-23). Competitive Identity: the new brand management for nations, cities and regions. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-230-50028-0. 
• Anholt, Simon (2003). Brand New Justice: the upside of global branding (paperback ed.). Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann. ISBN 0-7506-5699-9. 
• Anholt, Simon; Hildreth, Jeremy (2005-04-01). Brand America: The Mother of All Brands. Cyan Communications. ISBN 1-904879-02-0. 
• Anholt, Simon (January 2000). Another One Bites the Grass: Making Sense of International Advertising. New York: John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0-471-35488-0. 

References[link]

External links[link]

• Anholt's EuroPCom Keynote: time to stop wasting money on propaganda
• Simon Anholt's views on Brazil's distinctive image and gentle caution to its role as the 2016 Summer Olympics host - Brazil TV interview
• "International public opinion: the sole remaining superpower". Launch of Anholt's Climate Change Communication Forum at COP16, Mexico
• Interview with Simon Anholt on Malaysian radio
• www.simonanholt.com

Taylor Swift
Swift performing during the Australian leg of her Speak Now Tour in 2012
Background information
Birth name	Taylor Alison Swift
Born	(1989-12-13) December 13, 1989 (age 22) Reading, Pennsylvania, United States
Genres	Country-pop, pop, country, alternative rock
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, actress
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, banjo, ukulele, piano
Years active	2006–present
Labels	Big Machine
Website	TaylorSwift.com

Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Raised in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, Swift moved to Nashville, Tennessee at the age of fourteen to pursue a career in country music. She signed to the independent label Big Machine Records and became the youngest songwriter ever hired by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house. The release of Swift's self-titled debut album in 2006 established her as a country music star. "Our Song", her third single, made her the youngest sole writer and singer of a number one song on the country chart. She received a Best New Artist nomination at the 50th Grammy Awards.

Swift's second album, Fearless, was released in late 2008. Buoyed by the chart success of the singles "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me", Fearless attracted a crossover audience and became the top-selling album of 2009. The record won four Grammy Awards, with Swift becoming the youngest ever Album of the Year winner. Fearless also received Album of the Year plaudits at the American Music Awards, Academy of Country Music Awards and Country Music Association Awards, making it the most awarded album in country music history. In 2010, Swift released her third album, Speak Now, which sold over one million copies in its first week. She then embarked on the 111-date Speak Now World Tour, which was attended by over 1.6 million fans and has become one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time. The album's third single, "Mean", won two Grammy Awards for Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance. Swift is currently recording her fourth studio album, due for release in the fall of 2012.

Swift's work has earned her numerous accolades, including six Grammy Awards, ten AMAs, seven CMAs, six ACMs and 13 BMI Awards. She has sold over 22 million albums and 50 million song downloads worldwide, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Swift has endorsement deals with Target, CoverGirl, Sony, Elizabeth Arden, Walmart and American Greetings. As a philanthropist, Swift has placed particular emphasis on arts education, children's literacy and natural disaster relief funds. In addition to her music career, Swift has appeared as an actress in the crime drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2009), the romantic comedy Valentine's Day (2010) and the animated film The Lorax (2012).

Early life[link]

Taylor Alison Swift was born on December 13, 1989 in Reading, Pennsylvania.^[1] She is the daughter of Scott Swift, a Merrill Lynch financial adviser,^[2][3] and Andrea (née Gardner), a homemaker who previously worked as a mutual fund marketing executive.^[1][4] Swift was named after singer James Taylor; her mother believed a gender-neutral name would help her forge a successful business career.^[5][6] She has a younger brother, Austin, who attends Vanderbilt University.^[7] She spent the early years of her life on an eleven-acre Christmas tree farm in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania and was educated at the fee-paying Wyndcroft School.^[8] When Swift was nine years old, the family moved to Wyomissing, Pennsylvania,^[9][10] where she attended Wyomissing Area Junior/Senior High School.^[11] Swift spent her summers at her parent's vacation home in Stone Harbor, New Jersey^[12] and has described it as the place "where most of my childhood memories were formed".^[10]

Swift's first hobby was English horse riding. Her mother Andrea put her in a saddle when Swift was nine months old and she later competed in horse shows.^[13][14] Her family owned several Quarter horses and a Shetland pony.^[14] At the age of nine, Swift turned her attention to musical theatre and performed in Berks Youth Theatre Academy productions of Grease, Annie, Bye Bye Birdie and The Sound of Music.^[15][8] She travelled regularly to Broadway, New York for vocal and acting lessons. However, "after a few years of auditioning in New York and not getting anything”, Swift became interested in country music.^[16] She was inspired by LeAnn Rimes's Blue^[17] and her maternal grandmother, Marjorie Finlay, an opera singer.^[8] When she was in fourth grade, Swift won a national poetry contest with a three-page poem, "Monster in My Closet".^[18] At the age of eleven, after many attempts,^[19] Swift won a local talent competition by singing a rendition of LeAnn Rimes’s “Big Deal”, and was given the opportunity to appear as the opening act for Charlie Daniels at a Strausstown amphitheater.^[15] She spent her weekends performing at local festivals, fairs, coffeehouses, karaoke contests, garden clubs and Boy Scout meetings.^[20][4] This interest in country music isolated Swift from her middle school peers.^[21][22]

After watching a Behind the Music episode about Faith Hill,^[23] Swift recorded a demo of karaoke covers, and travelled with her mother to Nashville, Tennessee for spring break to leave a copy of the demo with record labels along Music Row. She received label rejections and realized that "everyone in that town wanted to do what I wanted to do. So, I kept thinking to myself, I need to figure out a way to be different".^[23] Swift began performing the "The Star Spangled Banner" at many sporting events, hoping she would be offered a recording contract. On one occasion, an eleven-year-old Swift high-fived Jay-Z after singing the national anthem at a 76ers game in Philadelphia.^[24] At the age of twelve, Swift was shown by a computer repairman how to play three chords on a guitar, inspiring her to write her first song, "Lucky You".^[25][26] She then recorded a second demo of original songs.^[15] In 2003, Swift and her parents began working with music manager Dan Dymtrow, after he spotted her singing at the US Open.^[27] Swift's second demo then caught the attention of RCA Records, who offered the eight-grader an artist development deal. In 2004, Swift modelled for Abercrombie and Fitch as part of their "Rising Stars" campaign and had an original song included in a Maybelline Cosmetics compilation CD.^[28]

When Swift was fourteen, her father transferred to the Nashville office of Merrill Lynch and the family relocated to a lake-shore house in Hendersonville, Tennessee.^[1] Swift has said her parents "presented it as a move to a nice community" rather than as her chance to become a star.^[29] Her mother has said, "We've always told her that this is not about putting food on our table or making our dreams come true."^[30] In Tennessee, Swift attended Hendersonville High School for her freshman and sophomore years.^[31] Later, to accommodate her touring schedule, Swift transferred to the Aaron Academy, a private Christian school which offered homeschooling services, and earned her high school diploma in 2008.^[32]

Music career[link]

[edit] 2004–08: Nashville songwriting sessions and Taylor Swift release

Swift moved to Nashville at the age of fourteen, having secured an artist development deal with RCA Records. Her musical influences included the Dixie Chicks, Shania Twain, LeAnn Rimes, Faith Hill,^[29] Tom Petty,^[33] Sheryl Crow,^[34] Melissa Etheridge, Pat Benatar,^[35] Reba McEntire, Garth Brooks,^[36] Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette.^[37] Swift had writing sessions with experienced songwriters such as Troy Verges, Brett Beavers, Brett James, Mac McAnally and the Warren Brothers,^[38][39] but eventually formed a lasting working relationship with Liz Rose.^[40] Swift saw Rose performing at an RCA songwriter event and suggested that they write together.^[41] They began meeting for two-hour writing sessions every Tuesday afternoon after school.^[42] Rose has said that the sessions were "some of the easiest I've ever done. Basically, I was just her editor. She'd write about what happened in school that day. She had such a clear vision of what she was trying to say. And she'd come in with the most incredible hooks".^[43][42] Swift also began recording demos with producer Nathan Chapman.^[41] After performing at a BMI Songwriter's Circle showcase at The Bitter End, New York,^[39] Swift became the youngest songwriter ever hired by the Sony/ATV Tree publishing house.^[44]

Swift performing at the Maverick Saloon & Grill in Santa Maria, California in 2006

Swift left RCA Records when she was fifteeen; the company wanted her to record the work of other songwriters and wait until she was eighteen to release an album, but she felt ready to launch her career with her own material.^[45][19] She also parted ways with manager Dan Dymtrow, who later took legal action against Swift and her parents.^[28] At an industry showcase at Nashville's The Bluebird Café in 2005, Swift caught the attention of Scott Borchetta, a Dreamworks Records executive who was preparing to form his own independent record label, Big Machine Records.^[40] Swift was one of the new label's first signings.^[40] As an introduction to the country music business, Borchetta arranged for Swift to intern at the CMA Music Festival; she acted as the artist escort for Darryl Worley.^[46][47]

Swift began working on her self-titled debut album shortly after signing her record deal. After experimenting with veteran Nashville producers, Swift persuaded Big Machine to hire her demo producer Nathan Chapman.^[19] It was his first time to record a studio album but Swift felt they had the right "chemistry".^[19] In the end, Chapman produced all but one of the tracks on Taylor Swift.^[19] She has described the album as the "diary" of her early teens^[48] and most songs were written during her freshman year of high school.^[19] As a result, the songs describe coming of age experiences such as insecurity, young love, and teenage angst.^[19] She has said that, although "it sounds like I've had 500 boyfriends", a lot of the songs are observational.^[19] Swift wrote three of the album's songs alone, including two singles, and co-wrote the remaining eight with writers such as Liz Rose, Robert Ellis Orrall and Angelo Petraglia.^[49] Musically, the album has been described as "a mix of trad-country instruments and spry rock guitars".^[50]

Taylor Swift was released in October 2006 and received generally positive reviews from music critics.^[51] PopMatters hoped Swift would be "able to find an accomodation between the country tradition and her very obvious pop sensibilities, because Taylor Swift suggests she has much to offer".^[52] The New Yorker's Sasha Frere-Jones described Swift as a "prodigy". She noted that "Our Song" "stop[ed] me in my tracks" and praised the lyrics: “He’s got a one-hand feel on the steering wheel, the other on my heart".^[53] Country Weekly felt Swift demonstrated "an honesty, intelligence and idealism with which listeners of any age will be able to connect" and noted that "the more thoughtful material suggests a talent poised to last well past high school".^[54] AllMusic stated that, while listening to the album, it was "never in doubt" that "Swift is a talent to be reckoned with".^[55] Rolling Stone described Swift as "bright-eyed but remarkably seasoned", and admired "Our Song"'s "insanely hooky sing-song melody that's as Britney as it is Patsy".^[50]

Swift performing at Yahoo HQ in Sunnyvale, California in 2007

Big Machine Records was still in its infancy upon the release of the lead single "Tim McGraw" in June 2006, and Swift and her mother helped "stuff the CD singles into envelopes to send to radio".^[30] She spent much of 2006 promoting Taylor Swift in a radio tour and later commented, "Radio tours for most artists last six weeks. Mine lasted six months."^[19] Swift painted canvases (inspired by Jackson Pollock) to gift to radio station managers who played her music.^[56] She took part in "GAC Short Cuts", a part-documentary, part-music-video series designed to introduce her to country music fans.^[57][58] She also made television appearances on Good Morning America,^[59] The Megan Mullally Show,^[59] America's Got Talent,^[60] and TRL.^[61] Swift, a self-described "kid of the internet",^[62] used MySpace to build a fanbase. She wrote her own blog posts, left comments on her fans' accounts and personally respond to the messages that were sent to her.^[63] This was, at the time, "revolutionary in country music".^[64][57] Borchetta has said that his decision to sign a sixteen year old singer-songwriter initially raised eyebrows among his record industry peers^[57] but Swift tapped into a previously unknown market: teenage girls who listen to country music.^[1][57]

Following "Tim McGraw", four further singles were released throughout 2007 and 2008: "Teardrops on My Guitar", "Our Song", "Picture to Burn" and "Should've Said No". All were highly successful on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, with "Our Song" and "Should've Said No" both reaching number one. "Our Song" made Swift the youngest sole writer and singer of a number one country song.^[65] "Teardrops on My Guitar" became a minor pop hit; it reached number thirteen on the Billboard Hot 100.^[66][67] The album sold 39,000 copies during its first week^[68] and, as of March 2011, has sold over 5.5 million copies worldwide.^[69] Swift also released a holiday album, Sounds of the Season: The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection, in October 2007 and an EP, Beautiful Eyes, in July 2008.^[70][71]

Swift toured extensively in support of Taylor Swift. In addition to festival and theater dates, Swift performed as an opening act for several country artists' concert tours. She opened for Rascal Flatts on several dates in late 2006.^[59][72] In 2007, she served as the opening act on twenty dates for George Strait's 2007 United States tour,^[73] several dates on Kenny Chesney's tour^[74] and selected dates on Brad Paisley's Bonfires & Amplifiers Tour.^[75][76] Also in 2007, Swift appeared as the opening act on several dates for Tim McGraw and Faith Hill's joint Soul2Soul II Tour.^[77] Swift again opened for Flatts for their Still Feels Good Tour in 2008.^[78] In addition to performing her own material, Swift played covers of songs by Beyoncé and Rihanna.^[79] She conducted meet-and-greet sessions with fans before and after her concerts; these lasted for up to four hours.^[80][81]

In 2007, Swift and Alan Jackson were jointly named the Nashville Songwriters Association's "Songwriter/Artists of the Year". Swift was the youngest person ever to be honored with the title.^[82] She also won the Country Music Association’s Horizon Award for Best New Artist.^[83] In 2008, she won Top New Female Vocalist at the Academy of Country Music Awards^[84] and Favorite Country Female Artist at the American Music Awards.^[85] She won seven BMI Awards for songs featured on Taylor Swift.^[86] Swift was also nominated for a 2008 Grammy Award in the category of Best New Artist, but lost to Amy Winehouse.^[87]

[edit] 2008–10: Fearless release, MTV VMA incident and media backlash

Swift's second studio album, Fearless, was released in November 2008.^[88] She wrote seven of the album's songs alone, including two singles, and co-wrote the remaining six with songwriters Liz Rose, John Rich, Colbie Caillat and Hillary Lindsey.^[49] While Swift wrote many of the songs on tour, she made a conscious effort not to include "road songs": "As a 16-year-old girl, I could never relate to those songs about playing a different city every night. I want to write about feelings and love and the lack of love".^[89] She has said that the album title "means you’re afraid of a lot of things, but you jump anyway".^[90] She co-produced the album with Nathan Chapman.^[49] Musically, the record is characterized by "loud, lean guitars and rousing choruses", with the occasional "bit of fiddle and banjo tucked into the mix".^[91]

Swift performing at the 2010 Cavendish Beach Music Festival in Canada

Fearless received generally positive reviews from music critics.^[92] The New York Times described Swift as "one of pop's finest songwriters, country’s foremost pragmatist and more in touch with her inner life than most adults".^[93] The Village Voice felt she displayed "preternatural wisdom and inclusiveness", "masterfully avoiding the typical diarist's pitfalls of trite banality and pseudo-profound bullshit".^[94] Rolling Stone described her as "a songwriting savant with an intuitive gift for verse-chorus-bridge architecture" whose "squirmingly intimate and true" songs seemed to be "literally ripped from a suburban girl's diary".^[95] USA Today found it "a pleasure to hear a gifted teenager who sounds like a gifted teenager, rather than a mouthpiece for a bunch of older pros' collective notion of adolescent yearning."^[96] The New Yorker described it as an album "without a bad track", adding that "the album’s finest effort, "Fifteen", will feature in yearbook quotes for years".^[97] Entertainment Weekly noted that the album would appeal mainly to young girls – "she sounds like a real teen, not some manufactured vixen-Lolita" – but predicted it would be "exciting to watch her precocious talent grow".^[98] Music critic Robert Christgau described Swift as "an uncommonly-to-impossibly strong and gifted teenage girl".^[99]

Swift promoted Fearless heavily upon its release. An episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show was dedicated to the album launch^[57] and Swift appeared on many other chat shows.^[100] She communicated with fans using social media platforms such as twitter and personal video blogs.^[57] In October 2008, she appeared at the CMT Giants: Alan Jackson event, performing a cover of Jackson's "Drive (For Daddy Gene)".^[101] In November 2008, Swift took part in a joint, televised concert with rock band Def Leppard in Nashville.^[102][103] She performed her song "Fifteen" with Miley Cyrus at the 51st Grammy Awards in February 2009.^[104] In April 2009, she performed a cover of George Strait's "Run" at a televised ACM event honoring Strait as Artist of the Decade.^[105] Swift hosted and appeared as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live in November 2009.^[106] The lead single from the album, "Love Story", was released in September 2008 and became the second best-selling country single of all time, peaking at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.^[67][107] Four more singles were released throughout 2008 and 2009: "White Horse", "You Belong with Me", "Fifteen" and "Fearless". "You Belong with Me" was the album's highest-charting single, peaking at number two on the Billboard Hot 100.^[108] The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 Album Chart with sales of 592,304 and has since sold over 8.6 million copies worldwide.^[109][110] It was the top-selling album of 2009 and brought Swift much crossover success.^[111]

Swift carried out her first headlining tour from April 2009 to June 2010. As part of the 105-date Fearless Tour, Swift played 90 dates in North America, six dates in Europe, eight dates in Australia and one date in Asia.^[112] The stage show included multiple costume changes, dancers and a fairy-tale castle set.^[113] She sang a cover of Justin Timberlake's "What Goes Around... Comes Around" nightly, intertwined with her own "You're Not Sorry".^[114] Swift invited John Mayer, Faith Hill and Katy Perry to perform one-off duets with her at various dates during the North American tour.^{[115][116][117]} Justin Bieber, Kelly Pickler and Gloriana were the support acts.^[118] The tour was attended by more than 1.1 million fans and has grossed over $63 million.^[119] Taylor Swift: Journey to Fearless, a concert film, was aired on television and later released on DVD and Blu-ray.^[120] Also in 2009, Swift performed as a supporting act for Keith Urban.^[121]

In September 2009, Swift became the first country music artist to win an MTV Video Music Award when "You Belong with Me" was named Best Female Video.^[122] Her acceptance speech was interrupted by rapper Kanye West, who had been involved in a number of other award show incidents.^[123] West declared Beyoncé's video for "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", nominated in the same category, to be "one of the best videos of all time." Many audience members booed West,^[124][125] prompting him to flip off the crowd.^[126][124] He then handed the microphone back to a speechless Swift.^[124][127] Backstage, Swift was seen "hysterically crying".^[124] According to Rolling Stone, when Swift's mother confronted West, he gave "a half-hearted apology in which he added he still thought Beyoncé's video was superior".^[128] West was removed from the event.^{[124][126][129]} When Beyoncé later won the award for Video of the Year, she invited Swift onstage to finish her speech.^[124][130] In the event's press room, Swift, who in 2008 had expressed a desire to sing a hook on a Kanye West rap song,^[131] was asked if she had "any hard feelings" towards West: "I don’t know him, and I’ve never met him, so... I don’t want to start anything because I had a great night tonight."^[128][132]

The incident received much media attention and inspired many Internet memes.^[133] President Barack Obama, in an "off the record" comment, called West a "jackass".^[134] Former US President Jimmy Carter said West's interruption was "completely uncalled for".^[135] West's behavior was criticized by celebrities, including Eminem, Snoop Dogg and Lady Gaga.^{[126][136][137][128]} The following day, West apologized for his verbal outburst both in a blog entry and during an appearance on The Jay Leno Show.^[124][125] He maintained that, while Swift was "very talented", "Beyoncé's video was the best of this decade!!!! ... I gave my awards to Outkast when they deserved it over me ... I'm not crazy y'all, I'm just real."^[138] Two days after the VMAs, Swift told an interviewer that West had not spoken to her since the ceremony.^[139] West then contacted her to offer a personal apology, which Swift accepted: "Kanye did call me, and he was very sincere in his apology."^[122][139] It has been said that the incident and subsequent media attention turned Swift into "a bona-fide mainstream celebrity".^[140]

Swift released a cover of Tom Petty's "American Girl", exclusively through Rhapsody in June 2009^[141] and continues to make her stage entrance to Petty's recording of the song.^[142] Swift contributed backing vocals to John Mayer's "Half of My Heart", featured on his fourth album, in November 2009.^[143] Mayer wrote the song as a tribute to Tom Petty and Fleetwood Mac: "I thought, 'Well, if this is going to be my love letter to that style of music, who's going to be the Stevie Nicks in this equation?' And I thought, 'This Taylor Swift girl is going to be around for a long time."^[144] The song received positive reviews from music critics.^{[145][146][147]} Swift and Mayer performed the song live at Madison Square Garden, New York in December 2009.^[148] It was released as the album's third single in June 2010 and peaked at number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100.^[149] Swift collaborated with a number of other artists in 2008 and 2009. She co-wrote and recorded "Best Days of Your Life" with Kelly Pickler.^[150] She co-wrote two songs for the Hannah Montana: The Movie soundtrack – "You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home" and "Crazier" – with Martin Johnson and Robert Ellis Orrall, respectively.^[151] Swift also provided vocals for Boys Like Girls's "Two Is Better Than One", written by Martin Johnson.^{[152][153][154][155]} In January 2010, Swift contributed two songs – including "Today Was a Fairytale" – to the Valentine's Day soundtrack^[156] and recorded a cover of Better Than Ezra's "Breathless" for the Hope for Haiti Now album.^[157]

Swift at the 2010 Time 100 Gala, where she was honored

In November 2009, Swift became the youngest ever artist, and one of only six women, to be named Entertainer of the Year by the Country Music Association.^[158] Fearless also won the Association's Album of the Year award.^[158] The album won many other accolades and has become the most awarded album in country music history.^[159] Swift was the youngest ever artist to win the Academy of Country Music's Album of the Year honor.^[160] The American Music Awards honored Swift with Artist of the Year and Favorite Country Album plaudits.^[161] She was awarded the Hal David Starlight Award by the Songwriters Hall of Fame^[162] and was named Songwriter/Artists of the Year by the Nashville Songwriters Association.^[163] She won four BMI Awards.^[164] Billboard named her 2009's Artist of the Year.^[165] Swift was included in Time's annual list of the 100 Most Influential People in 2010.^[166]

In January 2010, Swift won four Grammy Awards for Album of the Year, Best Country Album, Best Female Country Vocal Performance and Best Country Song, from a total of eight nominations.^[167][168] She was the youngest ever artist to win Album of the Year.^[169] During the ceremony, Swift sang "Rhiannon" and "You Belong with Me" with Stevie Nicks. Her vocal performance received negative reviews and sparked a widespread media backlash.^[140][170] Her vocals were described variously as "badly off-key", "strikingly bad" and "incredibly wretched".^[171][172] While The New York Times found it "refreshing to see someone so gifted make the occasional flub" and described Swift as "the most important new pop star of the past few years",^[169] music critic Bob Lefsetz predicted that her career would end "overnight".^[173][174] In April 2010, Stevie Nicks, writing in Time, defended the singer: "Taylor reminds me of myself in her determination and her childlike nature. It's an innocence that's so special and so rare. This girl writes the songs that make the whole world sing, like Neil Diamond or Elton John ... The female rock-'n'-roll-country-pop songwriter is back, and her name is Taylor Swift. And it's women like her who are going to save the music business."^[166]

[edit] 2010–12: Speak Now release, 13-month world tour and collaborations

Swift released her third studio album, Speak Now, in October 2010.^[175] She wrote all twelve songs alone: "I'd get my best ideas at 3 a.m. in Arkansas and I didn't have a co-writer around."^[176] Album recording sessions took place in California, Tennessee and Kentucky over a two year period.^[177][178] Swift, who co-produced the record with longtime collaborator Nathan Chapman,^[179] has described it as "a collection of confessions—things I wish I had said when I was in the moment".^[180] She originally intended to call the album Enchanted but Scott Borchetta, her record label's CEO, felt the title did not reflect the album's more adult themes: "She had played me a bunch of the new songs. I looked at her and I'm like, 'Taylor, this record isn't about fairy tales and high school anymore. That's not where you're at'".^[181] Musically, it has been said that the album "expands beyond country-pop to border both alternative rock and dirty bubblegum pop".^[182]

Speak Now received generally positive reviews from music critics.^[183] USA Today felt that Swift's songwriting skills would remind listeners "what all the fuss was about in the first place", with the album capturing "the sweet ache of becoming an adult".^[184] The Los Angeles Times praised her ability as a songwriter to "hit on common experiences that feel unique".^[182] The New York Times described the album as savage, musically diverse and "excellent too, possibly her best".^[179] The Village Voice found that the album demanded "a true appreciation of Swift's talent, which is not confessional, but dramatic: Like a procession of country songwriters before her, she creates characters and situations—some from life—and finds potent ways to describe them."^[185] Entertainment Weekly noted that while love may confound her, "the art of expert songcraft clearly doesn't".^[186] Music critic John Christgau found the album's songs "overlong and overworked" but remarked that "they evince an effort that bears a remarkable resemblance to care—that is, to caring in the best, broadest, and most emotional sense".^[99] Rolling Stone described Swift as one of the best songwriters in "pop, rock or country": "Swift might be a clever Nashville pro who knows all the hitmaking tricks, but she's also a high-strung, hyper-romantic gal with a melodramatic streak the size of the Atchafalaya Swamp".^[187]

Swift performing during the Speak Now World Tour in July 2011

Swift carried out an extensive promotional campaign prior to Speak Now's release.^[188] She appeared on various talk shows and morning shows, and gave free mini-concerts in unusual locations, including an open-decker bus on Hollywood Boulevard and a departure lounge at JFK airport.^[189][190] She took part in a "guitar pull" alongside Kris Kristofferson, Emmylou Harris, Vince Gill and Lionel Ritchie at LA's Club Nokia; the musicians shared the stage and took turns introducing and playing acoutic versions of their songs to raise money for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.^[191][192] The album's lead single, "Mine", was released in August 2010 and five further singles were released throughout 2010 and 2011: "Back to December", "Mean", "The Story of Us", "Sparks Fly" and "Ours".^[193] Speak Now was a major commercial success, debuting at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart. Its sales of 1,047,000 copies made it the sixteenth album in United States history to sell one million copies in a single week.^[194] As of February 2012, Speak Now has sold over four million copies in the US^[195] and over 5.7 million copies worldwide.^[196][197] In her career, as of May 2012, Swift has sold over 22 million albums^[198] and 50 million digital tracks worldwide.^[199]

In September 2010, Kanye West's 2009 VMA interruption once again became newsworthy when West used his twitter account to apologize to Swift, referring to her as "just a lil girl with dreams like the rest of us": ""I wrote a song for Taylor Swift that's so beautiful and I want her to have it. If she won't take it then I'll perform it for her." Later that month, both artists performed at the 2010 VMAs. Swift sang "Innocent", a song widely believed to be about West, which The Washington Post has described as "a small masterpiece of passive aggressiveness, a vivisection dressed up as a peace offering".^[200] Music critics found Swift's performance overly serious and "petty".^[201][202] Speaking in November 2010, West said he failed to see what was "so arrogant about that moment" and described his actions as "selfless". He added that "if it was the other way around" and Swift were an established artist who had "made the video of her career, do you think she would have lost to a brand new artist? Hell no!"^[203][204] Also that month, he claimed that, "If I wasn't drunk, I would have been on stage longer ... Taylor never came to my defense at any interview. And rode the waves and rode it and rode it".^[205][206] At the Costume Institute Gala in May 2011, Swift and West came face-to-face on the red carpet. West was observed to hold "a hand out, and the two exchanged a studiedly casual, “down low” high five".^[1]

Swift toured throughout 2011 and early 2012 in support of Speak Now. As part of the thirteen-month, 111-date world tour, Swift played seven shows in Asia, twelve shows in Europe, 80 shows in North America and twelve shows in Australasia.^[207] Three dates on the US tour were rescheduled after Swift fell ill with bronchitis.^[208] The stage show was inspired by Broadway musical theatre, with choreographed routines, elaborate set-pieces, pyrotechnics and numerous costume changes.^[209][210] Swift invited many musicians to join her for one-off duets during the North American tour. Appearances were made by James Taylor, Jason Mraz, Shawn Colvin, Johnny Rzeznik, Andy Grammer, Tal Bachman, Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, Nicki Minaj, Nelly, B.o.B., Usher, Flo Rida, T.I., Jon Foreman, Jim Adkins, Hayley Williams, Hot Chelle Rae, Ronnie Dunn, Darius Rucker, Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney.^[211][212] The tour was attended by over 1.6 million fans and has grossed over $123 million, becoming one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time.^[207] Swift's first live album, Speak Now World Tour: Live, featuring all seventeen performances from the North American leg of the tour, was released in November 2011.^[213]

Swift speaking during a Youtube interview in September 2011

During the North American and Australasian tour legs, Swift wrote different song lyrics on her left arm for each performance. She has said that the lyrics should be viewed as a nightly "mood ring"^[214] and The New Yorker has cited the practice as an example of Swift's "keen understanding of what fuels fan obsession in the first place: a desire for intimacy between singer and listener".^[1] Artists quoted include Tom Petty, Carole King, Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, Joni Mitchell, Ryan Adams, Patty Griffin, Band of Horses, Jimmy Eat World, Death Cab For Cutie, Alanis Morrissette, Rachael Yamagata, Erin McCarley, Mindy Smith and Martina McBride.^[215][216] Swift also performed many acoustic cover versions during her North American tour. In each city, she paid tribute to a homegrown artist.^[217] She has said the cover versions allowed her to be "spontaneous" in an otherwise well-rehearsed show: "You'll have a lot of people who will come to more than one show, and I want them to get a different experience every time."^[218] Artists covered include Justin Timberlake, Tori Amos, TLC, Pink, Fall Out Boy, Dave Matthews Band, Michelle Branch, Jordin Sparks, Maroon 5, Train, John Mellencamp, Kim Carnes, Avril Lavigne, The Jackson 5, Carolyn Dawn Johnson, Gwen Stefani, All American Rejects, Britney Spears and Eminem.^[219]

At the 54th Grammy Awards in February 2012, Swift's song "Mean" won Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance.^[220] She also performed "Mean" during the ceremony. The song is believed to be a rebuttal to Bob Lefsetz, one of the most vocal critics of her 2010 Grammy performance.^[174] Lefsetz had previously been a supporter of the singer's career,^[221] and Swift and Lefsetz had corresponded occasionally by email and telephone.^[174] Time felt she "delivered her comeback on-key and with a vengeance"^[222] while USA Today remarked that the criticism in 2010 seemed to have "made her a better songwriter and live performer".^[223]

Swift was named Songwriter/Artist of the Year by the Nashville Songwriters Association in both 2010 and 2011. During the 2011 ceremony, she played an acoustic version of "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)" in honor of Alan Jackson, a Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee,^[224] who later thanked Swift in his speech for "the prettiest version I've ever heard".^[225] Swift won various other awards for Speak Now. She was named Entertainer of the Year by the Academy of Country Music in both 2011 and 2012^[226] and was named Entertainer of the Year by the Country Music Association in 2011.^[227] Swift was the American Music Awards's Artist of the Year in 2011, and Speak Now was named Favorite Country Album.^[228] She was also the recipient of two BMI Awards.^[229] Billboard named Swift 2011's Woman of the Year.^[230] Also that year, Billboard ranked her at number 15 in a list of the Top 20 Hot 100 Songwriters 2000–2011; she was the second highest ranking woman.^[231] Swift was ranked second on Rolling Stone's list of the Top 16 "Queen Of Pops" of the decade.^[232]

Swift contributed two original songs to The Hunger Games soundtrack album in March 2012. "Safe & Sound" was co-written and recorded with The Civil Wars and T-Bone Burnett.^[233] John Paul White has said working with Swift was "a revelation. She had some great ideas. We had complete freedom. It truly was a collaboration. We brought the melancholy and the darker angle. Taylor was bringing the melody and the chords."^[234] Rolling Stone described the song as "Swift's prettiest ballad" and wondered whether the alt-country folk song was "a one-off novelty, a trial balloon cred-move, or the stirrings of a "grown-up" style".^[235] Swift and The Civil Wars debuted a live version of the song at the Ryman Auditorium, Nashville in January 2012.^[236] It was released as the album's lead single and, as of April 2012, has sold 970,000 copies in the United States.^[237] Swift's second contribution to the album, "Eyes Open", was written solely by the singer and produced by Nathan Chapman.^[238] In May 2012, Swift contributed vocals to "Both of Us", a Dr. Luke-produced song on B.o.B's second album Strange Clouds.^{[239][240][241][242]}

2012–present: Untitled fourth studio album[link]

Swift is currently working on her fourth album with producer Nathan Chapman.^[243][244] It is scheduled for release in the fall of 2012.^[245] Swift intends to keep writing and recording throughout 2012 "because I'm having so much fun".^[246] After writing her third album alone, Swift is now collaborating with people "from all different places in music",^[246] including songwriters Lori McKenna,^[247][248] Butch Walker,^[249][250] Ed Sheeran,^[251] and Dan Wilson.^[252] The album will detail "the rise and fall of a relationship",^[253] as well as the resulting "absolute crash-and-burn heartbreak".^[254] She has described the album's mood as "sad, if I'm being honest."^[255]

Artistry[link]

Songwriting style[link]

Swift has said she writes songs as an "open letter".^[256] She has said songwriting is "is a way of verbalizing those things that I feel that I can’t say".^[47] Swift has said she is "very interested in any writing from a child's perspective" and has cited To Kill a Mockingbird as one of her favorite books.^[257] Neil Young has described Swift as "a great writer" and follows her career.^[258][259] Kris Kristofferson has said that "she blows me away. It's amazing to me that someone so young is writing such great songs. She's got a great career ahead of her".^[260][261] Dolly Parton has said her songs are "great" and that she has "the qualities that could last a long time".^[262] Stevie Nicks has said Swift writes "songs that make the whole world sing, like Neil Diamond or Elton John".^[166]

Vocal abilities[link]

In studio recordings, the Los Angeles Times identifies Swift's "defining" vocal gesture as "the line that slides down like a contented sigh or up like a raised eyebrow, giving her beloved girl-time hits their air of easy intimacy".^[182] In a review of Speak Now, The Village Voice noted that her phrasing was previously "bland and muddled, but that's changed. She can still sound strained and thin, and often strays into a pitch that drives some people crazy; but she's learned how to make words sound like what they mean".^[185] Slate, reviewing Speak Now, described Swift as "a technically poor singer": "Though she does vary her phrasing in ways that attempt to mask her limited voice (the way she sneers, "She looks at me like I'm a trend/And she's so over it," on "Better Than Revenge" is especially effective), Swift is still noticeably off-pitch at least once on every song on the album".^[263]

In an interview with The New Yorker, Swift characterized herself primarily as a songwriter: “I write songs, and my voice is just a way to get those lyrics across”.^[1] "I'm not trying to go out there and do vocal acrobatics. I'm just trying to write good songs".^[264] However, her vocal presence is something that concerns her and she has "put a lot of work" into improving it.^[265] She has said that she only feels nervous performing "if I'm not sure what the audience thinks of me, like at award shows".^[266]