I've been doing an awful lot of reading during "Ricky Martin Week," so much so, that I believe I should update my disclaimer at the bottom of this commentary and acknowledge being an expert on how Ricky Martin and others just like him are treated in the American English-language media.
 
Take a look at this article: "ARAB FAN SLIPS RICKY A TRICKY," written by New York Post reporters, Uri Dan and Dan Mangan.
 
Here's how the article begins:
 
«Pop star Ricky Martin might want to stick to singing in Spanish instead of advocating in Arabic - the Latino heartthrob had to apologize yesterday hours after he was sandbagged by a fan who dragged him into the controversy over Jerusalem»
 
First of all, Ricky Martin sings in English AND Spanish and when he was a Menudo he sang in Portuguese and Italian as well.
 
Second, I'll bet you anything Uri Dan and Dan Mangan cannot speak English any better than Ricky Martin can AND they probably HAVE NO DESIRE to speak Spanish or any other "foreign" language.
 
I'll also bet you anything that Uri Dan and Dan Mangan never raised a million dollars for musical instruments for school kids in Puerto Rico OR ANYWHERE ELSE -- like Ricky Martin did.
 
This is the part of the article that REALLY stands out .  .  .
 
«"This incident proves once again that singers should stick to singing, and leave politics to those who really understand it," said Arye Mekel, the Israeli general consul in New York.»
 
The New York Post went to great lengths, it seems, to get a quote from Arye Mekel -- who didn't seem to mind OR REMEMBER that only five months ago, Ricky Martin joined other stars to fight anti-Semitism BEFORE he began helping Arab kids seek an end to stereotypes.
 
Here's something from Rush & Molloy's column in the New York Daily News from February 8, 2005 .  .  .
 
«Understanding celebrities Denzel Washington, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ricky Martin and Beyoncé Knowles are joining forces to fight anti-Semitism»
 
Now, let's just put everything in context: Some Arab MORON kid -- who couldn't seem to control his jew-hating nature for even one afternoon, hands Ricky Martin a traditional headscarf that said "Jerusalem Is Ours" and the American English-language media is having a field day with this "INTERNATIONAL INCIDENT" that is in actuality -- NOTHING AT ALL.
 
The MORON Arab kid should have been criticized in the media -- NOT Ricky Martin.
 
The El Nuevo Día article by Bibiana Ferraiuoli Suárez, "Amena audiencia entre adolescentes," didn't even mention the headscarf incident -- why? Because it WAS NOT IMPORTANT.

Another Arab kid could have just as easily handed Ricky Martin a T-shirt written in Arabic that read in English, "I SUPPORT THE WAR IN IRAQ" -- and Ricky Martin would have accepted the gift -- unaware of it's message -- but would DEFINITELY NOT have agreed with it's message in ANY WAY, SHAPE OR FORM.
 
Is it possible that Puerto Rican-American celebrities "ARE ALLOWED" to help people throughout the world ONLY if they speak, read and write each country's language?
 
Does Angelina Jolie speak the language of EVERY country she visits for the United Nations, speaking out for the good of ALL people?
 
Ricky Martin is the United Nations Children's Fund Goodwill Ambassador -- THE EXACT SAME ORGANIZATION as Angelina Jolie -- yet Angelina can do NO WRONG in the American English-language media's opinion.
 
What does Ricky Martin have to do -- parade himself around like a whore, visit sex-toy shops in London, adopt a few Asian kids and break up Jennifer Anistan's next marriage -- to be treated EQUALLY?
 
But then, the American English-language media doesn't have a HANDS OFF, FREE PASS policy for the biggest, globally recognized and admired Puerto Rican and/or Hispanic stars like Jennifer López and Ricky Martin AS THEY DO OPRAH WINFREY and BILL COSBY and a few others just like them.
 
The media seems to "ALLOW" African-Americans to have at least 2 huge icons -- who both actually DESERVE the respect they get -- because they BOTH have done SO MUCH for SO MANY.
 
What about Puerto Ricans and/or Hispanic entertainers.  NOT ALL OF THEM -- just the top 2, WHO EQUALLY DO AS MUCH FOR PEOPLE as Oprah Winfrey and Bill Cosby -- but may not publicize everything and/or may not "enjoy" the same media coverage -- for whatever reason.
 
Ricky Martin and Jennifer López aren't alcoholics like SO MANY CELEBRITIES ARE and who are LOVED BY THE MEDIA. Ricky Martin and Jennifer López been NEVER been arrested, like SO MANY CELEBRITIES HAVE and who are LOVED BY THE MEDIA. They don't beat or sexually abuse kids like comedian Paula Poundstone, and who is LOVED BY THE MEDIA.  They don't get into traffic accidents and leave the scene of a crime like my ex-wife, Halle Berry did. Did I say ex? -- I meant current. I still love Halle, although I wouldn't get in a car with her for any amount of money, and yes, she is also LOVED BY THE MEDIA. Ricky Martin and Jennifer López are not 2 whores, appearing in home sex videos like Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee, Paris Hilton, Colin Farrell and/or a couple of hundred others. Ricky Martin is NOT David Hans Schmidt, who appeared on the front page of the Los Angeles Times this morning for peddling these unauthorized sex tapes.  A quick search of the Los Angeles Times Online shows NO ARTICLE on RICKY MARTIN'S trips to Jordan and Thailand. Ricky Martin and Jennifer López don't do ANYTHING wrong -- except the same thing EVERY CELEBRITY DOES WRONG, which is needing too much attention and then complaining when they get it.
 
Other than that, Jennifer López and Ricky Martin lead, AND HAVE LED, exemplary lives and are held in high regard my tens of millions of people throughout the world.
 
How many tens of millions of people hold American English-language showbiz reporters in that high a regard?
 
That was a rhetorical question!
 
Anyway, here's the PERFECT example -- Jerry Lewis.  Just like Ricky Martin, AT THE HEIGHT OF HIS CAREER, Jerry Lewis did something decades ago NO ONE BEFORE HIM in showbiz EVER did -- he BEGAN devoting his life to a noble cause that would eventually earn him a Nobel Peace Prize nomination.  Since then, he has raised almost 2 BILLION DOLLARS for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
 
There isn't a doubt in my mind that Ricky Martin will one day win the Nobel Peace Prize.
 
There isn't a doubt in my mind that if Ricky Martin AKA Bono Jr. were to have ever won an award and used the "F" word like BONO did on live television -- he'd still be blacklisted.  BONO is someone else who DESERVES the Nobel Peace Prize for EVERYTHING HE HAS DONE.  Just in case you are not aware, BONO is a SINGER, just like Ricky Martin -- YET BONO CAN DO NO WRONG -- and yes, you guessed it -- BONO is NOT PUERTO RICAN and/or Hispanic -- never has been, never will be -- and unless he kills someone -- the MEDIA will RESPECT his philanthropic work.
 
Anyway, back to Jerry Lewis. Here's the deal -- JERRY LEWIS, for the most part, was ALSO LEFT ALONE to do GOOD around the world, and rarely, if ever, was he criticized in the media for his philanthropic work or occasional misstep.
 
But then Jerry Lewis is Jewish and the American English-language media IS NOT Puerto Rican and/or Hispanic.
 
Which brings me back to Arye Mekel, Uri Dan and Dan Mangan.  Did they or would they have EVER dared to write that Jerry Lewis go back to singing or acting?  NOT LIKELY.  Jerry Lewis was as famous for singing at one point in his career as he was for acting.
 
For me, Jerry Lewis is the greatest thing in show business.  Not only is he my all-time favorite celebrity -- with Bob Barker a very close second -- but he has really done NOTHING BUT GOOD FOR SO MANY during his life and will be honored once again, later this year, with the Governor's Award by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
 
So why is Ricky Martin REALLY being criticized?
 
Is it his fault he's not 80-years-old and proven himself over MANY decades? NOPE!
 
Is it his fault that now-a-days there are so many asshole celebrities out there that FEW IF ANY are taken seriously anymore?  MORE THAN POSSIBLE!
 
Is it possible that the American English-language media is less likely to respect and drool over the whitest-tanned-year-round showbiz people in the world? BINGO!

Why is it when Sony BMG pays a fine of $10 million after they are caught in a payola scandal, it becomes the JENNIFER LÓPEZ SCANDAL in the American English-language media and in the American Spanish-language media, you'll find out that it's A LOT MORE than just Jennifer López' songs -- and that it includes Beyoncé, Good Charlotte AND OTHERS.
 
It's ALL SONY BMG, 100% -- yet once again, it has been CLEVERLY suggested and HIGHLIGHTED as though it's ALL Jennifer López' music or fault -- AND IT'S NOT.
 
Sure, Jennifer López is probably the most famous of the artists SONY BMG paid radio stations to play their music -- but if it were a scandal involving Oprah Winfrey's record label or Bill Cosby's record label -- he actually has one -- comedy recordings -- EVERY LAST SINGER OR GROUP would have been mentioned LEAVING NOTHING TO ANYONE'S IMAGINATION AS TO WHAT THE REAL DEAL IS.
 
It's that simple.
 
AND IT HAS TO CHANGE!
 
Every Puerto Rican and/or Hispanic kid growing up today DESERVES to have those celebrities who MAKE IT TO THE TOP ON THEIR OWN and then do GREAT THINGS FOR OTHERS when they made it -- REMAIN AT THE TOP -- as long as they earn it and deserve it -- just like Oprah Winfrey and Bill Cosby.
 
When someone like Sean Penn -- GREAT ACTOR/ASSHOLE -- travels to Iraq and does the SAME DAMN THING Ricky Martin did in Jordan -- EXCEPT Ricky Martin NEVER sold out his country(ies) like Sean Penn did -- THE MEDIA LOVES THE GUY.  I don't remember Ricky Martin holding Madonna hostage for a couple days many years ago like Sean Penn did.
 
Maybe Ricky Martin should hold Salma Hayek hostage, tied up, sitting naked on a chair for two days or more so he can also be held in high regard by the American English-language media.
 
So what if Sean Penn ever falls out of grace with the media? -- there are hundreds and hundreds of Anglo actors and celebrities for kids to grow up respecting and many times emulating.
 
When the media CUTS DOWN Ricky Martin, Jennifer López and a few other TOP Puerto Rican and/or Hispanic superstars -- THAT'S IT -- there is NO ONE to replace them immediately or anytime soon.
 
THAT'S THE PROBLEM -- IT MAY ALSO BE THE PLAN!
 
Jennifer López is EQUALLY as successful a businesswoman as Oprah Winfrey -- year for year -- considering their ages.
 
Oprah Winfrey has been in showbiz for more than 20 years now -- 20 years alone with her syndicated TV show -- Jennifer López has been around less than half that time and has accomplished A LOT.
 
Ricky Martin is EQUALLY as philanthropic as BONO -- NOT EVEN year for year.
 
When BONO is on the Today Show every other week, it seems, talking with Katie Couric or Matt Lauer about world poverty, AIDS, etc., usually using the word "bullshit" during his live interviews -- HE'S THE REAL DEAL.  And he is the REAL DEAL -- ONE OF THEM -- THERE ARE OTHERS, like Ricky Martin and Jennifer López.
 
I never remember Ricky Martin or Jennifer López cursing on ANY live awards show they attended.
 
IT'S RICKY MARTIN who is CRITICIZED, it's Ricky Martin, who if he didn't hold up the headscarf he received as a "gift" from the MORON Arab boy, would have never had his trip mentioned on The Today Show on NBC for about 8 - 10 seconds covering ONLY the NEGATIVE aspect of his trip.
 
I didn't see the report yesterday morning on the Today Show when Ricky Martin, in association with the best newspaper in Puerto Rico, El Nuevo Día, delivered houses to tsunami victims in Thailand.  Not even a 8 - 10 second mention.
 
I DID HOWEVER, see their report on the guy who blew his brains out at The Miami Herald Building in Florida.  It was actually on EVERY newscast and in every newspaper in the United States.
 
Maybe it's just me -- BUT COULDN'T THE MEDIA HAVE RUN BOTH STORIES?
 
When Oprah Winfrey gives away 200+ brand new cars to her entire studio audience -- she's almost on a quicker track to become a Saint than Pope John Paul II -- IN THE MEDIA'S EYES.  But then the ONE HALF of the African-American TEAM that is OFF LIMITS TO THE PRESS, is not Puerto Rican and/or Hispanic.
 
Why can't there be a HANDS OFF, FREE PASS Puerto Rican and/or Hispanic TEAM?
 
My Puerto Rican and/or Hispanic kids would BENEFIT from such a team. So would ten to twenty million other kids in the United States and Puerto Rico. It's not like Puerto Ricans and/or Hispanics don't know how to PLAY ON A TEAM.
 
They can PLAY as good or better than anyone else.  THE TRICK seems to be GETTING ON THE TEAM.
 
If ONLY Puerto Rican and/or Hispanic celebrities are to be held responsible for the people they stand next to or the gifts they accept from them -- regardless of the language they are written in -- THEN SOMETHING IS VERY, VERY WRONG.
 
Back now to the Ricky Martin, El Nuevo Día Home Giveaway: Did any of you, who read only English, and watch only American English-language television, know before you read my commentary this week, that "Ricky Martin Delivered Houses To Thailand's Tsunami Victims"?
 
It's in today's El Nuevo Día in another article by Bibiana Ferraiuoli Suárez, entitled "Llaves para un nuevo techo."
 
I could find ONLY TWO articles available in English and THEY were from THAILAND and BORNEO.
 
There were 79 articles on the "Ricky Martin Headscarf Scandal" -- just on a quick Yahoo! search alone.
 
Once again -- WHERE'S THE HISPANIC CIVIL RIGHTS ORGANIZATIONS demanding EQUAL media coverage for entertainers of EQUAL QUALITY?
 
This should have been done -- and done in a BIG WAY a couple of decades ago.
 
And don't forget the doctors, lawyers, journalists, smart kids, intelligent adults, successful businessmen and businesswomen, etc., etc., etc. -- who largely go UNNOTICED and UNREPORTED by the American English-language media.
 
I just wish I had a dollar for every NEGATIVE story or article written or presented about Puerto Ricans and/or Hispanics in the past 20 years -- I'd be richer than Ricky Martin, Jennifer López, Oprah Winfrey and Bill Cosby COMBINED -- but then that's no way for ANYONE to want to and/or expect to earn a living -- AND THAT SHOULD INCLUDE THE AMERICAN ENGLISH-LANGUAGE MEDIA.
 
And finally, if you haven't already died of old age, reading through all my thoughts this week -- if you are under the impression that what I write each week is the worst writing in the English language -- anywhere -- especially with the usually unacceptable language I have begun to use from time-to-time, to hopefully express exactly how mad I am -- YOU ARE WRONG!  That distinction goes to Dan McKay, a computer analyst at Microsoft Great Plains in Fargo, North Dakota.  He is this year's winner for a piece he wrote, comparing women's breasts to carburetors.
 
Oh well, there's always next year!

Well, that's all folks! Until next Friday.

Keith


For motivational speeches, conferences, media requests and other things such as eating disorders, you'll have to contact someone else. My only qualifications for writing a weekly column are based solely upon having a lot of free time, unlimited Internet access and very little else.