DavidPFranceTV INTERVIEW #40
OMAR WASOW
Assistant Professor, Princeton University
Co-Founder of Blackplanet.com
Princeton, NJ
In his 40th interview, David speaks with Omar Wasow, Assistant Professor at Princeton University and Co-Founder of Blackplanet.com.
David met Omar when they worked at MSNBC (U.S. Cable Television Station).
Omar was a correspondent who focused on technology and David worked as a Guest Booker for Breaking News - Dayside and Weekend Programming.
In this conversation, David speaks with Omar about his upbringing, being biracial in America, his time at MSNBC, the birth of Blackplanet.com; the role of technology and innovation in the current media landscape, and how racial unrest and social upheaval could affect the election and the political direction of the United States.
Omar also speaks about his wife, Jennifer Brea, their marriage and Jennifer's debilitating experience suffering many years with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS).
Omar is a graduate of Stanford University in California with a degree in Race and Ethnic Relations. He earned a PhD in African-American Studies, a Master of Arts in Government and an Master of Arts in Statistics, all from Harvard University.
Wasow graduated from Stuyvesant High School in New York City, where he was President of the Student Union.
In 1995, Wasow was proclaimed by Newsweek as one of the "fifty most influential people to watch in cyberspace.
(Note: As a professor, Omar's focus is on race and technology.
Blackplanet.com was launched on September 1, 2001 by Omar, who in 2001 was running "New York Online", a pre-web community he started in 1993 from his living room in Brooklyn. Blackplanet.com would eventually be sold via a company called Community Connect for $38 million to Radio One, a Lanham, Maryland-based media founded by Black American Businesswoman Cathy Hughes.)
www.blackplanet.com
(Additional note: Jennifer created a documentary film, "Unrest" about her experience often directing from her bed.
"Unrest", premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival and received the US Documentary Special Jury Award For Editing.
Jennifer also co-created a virtual reality film which premiered at Tribeca Film Festival.
Currently, Jennifer is experiencing remission of the illness.)
www.unrest.film
