Heads and tales: Look at me

Can’t stop the signal 1: A new promotional campaign in TV commercials and print ads will tout “Birmingham: The DiverseCity.” Ugh. Maybe instead, “Birmingham, the city too busy to learn.” Or “What happens in Birmingham … is none of your damn business.” More commercials in an unrelated campaign will highlight the city’s growing tech industry. Some say the city needs an image makeover, and that we suffer low self-esteem, either from racial history, risk aversion or poor leadership. At least it wasn’t “Birmingham: The AdverseCity.”
• New ads to promote ‘The DiverseCity’ [Birmingham News]

Can’t stop the signal 2: Once we lure tourists here, what next? CityVision is a promotional channel offered on TV sets in 50 area hotels, similar to travel guides offered in other cities. Restaurants and attractions advertise on a half-hour repeating DVD on the channel, free to hotels. Let’s hope guests don’t accidentally flip to this show.
• CityVision showcasing Birmingham’s attractions [Birmingham Business Journal]

Can’t stop the signal 3: What better way to show off the city than a segregation-era battle between blacks and whites? That’s the pitch (cough) behind Sunday’s game at Rickwood Field between the all-white Bristol (Conn.) Barnstormers and the Birmingham Black Barons, broadcast live on ESPN Classic. Jodi Markley, a senior vice president for ESPN Classic, said, “This is the first time we’ve put together an all-white vs. an all-black team. We want to showcase the game through the eyes of the segregated South.” (Oddly enough, the black team vs. white team is overlooked in this story.) The game airs from 3 to 6 p.m. with Chuck D(!) in the booth. Tickets are $10 and $12 at the ballpark and also at the Hoover Met.
• Black, white and televised all over: Segregated baseball to be re-enacted [Birmingham News]

Ciao, bella: Before we Turin out the lights (ack), one last Winter Olympics quickie. Albertville native and Auburn alum Elise Woodward Thomason was the lead designer for the pictograms for the 15 sports. “I saw them printed large, on the sides of buildings, and huge banners on the side of the Olympic stadium. It was a bit of a thrill.” Ah, the thrill of victory, the agony of design.
• AU grad’s art covers Turin [Birmingham News]

Also:

• Anti-crime summit interrupted by drug dealer’s beeper
• Weekend forecast: baby shower, with occasional drooling
• Still no winner in state’s hepatitis lottery

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Posted: Friday, February 24, 2006, 3:46 pm, in Headlines.
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