My New Vlog
If you had asked me five years ago whether I would be doing a vlog at my age, I would have laughed. But when I retired, I felt the call of the camera once again and thought “I can do that! I can be a vlogger.” But here’s the thing. I never thought I would have to become a one-woman production band.
Here’s what it takes: I first search my living room, bedroom, office and kitchen to find a relevant background. I position a light and set up my iPhone camera on a tripod and check the sound and video. Then—one more important step before I start— hair and makeup… in my bathroom.
Let’s not even talk about editing and posting. (Secretly, I love the whole process.)
I’m proof you can teach an old beeatch new tricks!
Welcome to My New Vlog
Hello, I’m Carole Simpson. Welcome to my new video blog that I call W.O.W.—an acronym for Wise Old Woman. You may remember me as the anchor of the weekend news on ABC, or maybe as the first woman and first minority to moderate a presidential debate. Why do I think...
4th of July, Hijacked
NOT HIS 4TH OF JULY. IT’S OURS! Why does Donald Trump have to go and change everything? Now he wants to change the Fourth of July celebration that has been held on the Washington Mall exciting millions of Americans for the past 50 years. It’s been going along just...
Abortion Rights Under Virulent Attack
I have something to say about the attacks on abortion. In 1973, we women thought the question of abortion was all settled. The Supreme Court decided in the Roe v. Wade case that abortion was a matter of privacy and medicine, not politics and religion. But this year...
Old Lady Fashion
I have something to say about fashion. I was browsing through a women’s magazine and came across an article and photos of what women should be wearing during different decades of their lives. There were clothes for women in their 20’s—very hip, very trendy. For those...
Chicago Murders
Hello: I have something to say about the Chicago shootings and murders. I grew up on the southside of Chicago, just like Michelle Obama. But now, some of the streets I walked as a child have been dripping with blood. My kind of town is the murder capital among...
Fake News
I have something to say about Fake News. I’m sick of hearing “fake news.” The term suggests that what you read and watch in the mainstream media is just made up by journalists. And by mainstream media I mean the long-established newspapers and television networks,...
Chocolate is Good for You
Hello everybody. I have something to say about chocolate. I have been a lifelong chocoholic. When some people get upset about something, they turn to drinking, smoking, taking pills or eating. My drug of choice has always been chocolate. I don’t even have to eat it....
Generation Z Needs to Get Woke
Last fall on the first day of class, I asked my 60 freshmen journalism students in what year they were born. One young man shouted out, “2000.” Others nodded in agreement. 2000? I thought, oh my God. This is Generation Z, the vanguard of people born in the second...
Not Enough Adjectives
Hello Everybody: I have something to say about adjectives. Adjectives about Donald Trump. You know what adjectives are…the part of speech that describes a person or a thing. Adjectives can be positive, like an honest politician. Or they can be negative, like a...