News and Notes from the
World of Al Menconi

The Blog by Michelle Lamar, Huffington Post /August 10, 2012 If you are a parent with teenagers, one of the first things you need is a translator. Parenting teenagers requires you to read between the lines of what your kids tell you to find out what is really going on. By definition, a parent is embarrassing to a teenager and most teens like their privacy. This is a given, but it is also because parental supervision tends to get in the way of fun. So parents are provided with the least amount of information possible. Translating teen speak can be challenging, but think of it as an adventure! Like an anthropologist studying a different culture, you can understand the complicated language of teens if you keep two rules in mind: Rule 1 : All teenagers lie to their parents. Some teens are masters of deception while others fib a little. But all teenagers embellish the truth. Rule 2: If you don't believe rule #1, you are in denial. Here are some examples of Teen Speak a

Why YouTube makes parenting teens even harder Posted on MD Mama by Dr. Claire McCarthy June 7, 2012 Have you heard of the California Knockout? I hadn't when I was asked by our local Fox TV station to talk about it, so I did what we all do these days when we want to find out about something: I Googled it. I found out that it's a variation on the Choking Game: you hyperventilate, then someone pushes on your chest which stops blood flow to the brain. You get a quick high, and then you pass out. Yet another one of the outrageously stupid and dangerous things that teenagers do--and apparently a bunch of middle schoolers in Northbridge have been doing it, prompting the principal to send out an email warning parents. Among the links on Google were links to Youtube--and I was floored. There was video after video of kids doing this. If anybody has even the slightest question about how to do it effectively, a quick check of YouTube will answer it for you. Of course, the vid

GMC TV PRESENTS THE ORIGINAL WORLD TELEVISION PREMIERE OF THE HIT REALITY SERIES ‘THE SONG THAT CHANGED MY LIFE WITH MARVIN SAPP’ FEATURING PASTOR AND AWARD-WINNING GOSPEL MUSIC 
SINGER-SONGWRITER MARVIN SAPP AND HIS HIT SONG ‘NEVER WOULD HAVE MADE IT’ NARRATED BY POP ICON AND TV HOST JOHN TESH PREMIERES SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 TH  AT 9:00 PM and 11:30 PM EST EXCLUSIVELY ON GMC ATLANTA, GA. September 5, 2012 – GMC TV, America’s favorite channel for uplifting family entertainment, presents the Original World Television Premiere of “The Song that Changed My Life with Marvin Sapp,” the latest installment in the network’s reality television series chronicling the impact of inspirational music by great artists. This emotionally powerful and inspiring episode features pastor and award-winning gospel music singer-songwriter Marvin Sapp and Yolanda Bennett, a former hairdresser and mother whose life was transformed by Sapp’s 2007 hit single “Never Would Have Made

'Burn books' are sparking controversy Detective: It's cyberbullying By CINDY STAUFFER Staff Writer You have a big nose. Your butt is huge. You're ugly. You smell. These insults — and much worse — are popping up on the Internet in "burn book" accounts that are specific to area schools and to particular students there. The burn books are creating a stir in local communities and across the country. Inspired by the 2004 Lindsay Lohan movie "Mean Girls," burn books are Twitter accounts where an anonymous person posts multiple Tweets that insult, taunt and call out classmates by name on the social media messaging network. Manheim Township, Warwick, Manheim Central, Donegal, Garden Spot, Hempfield and Ephrata schools are among those that have been targeted by burn book accounts. Concerned parents and students have alerted local police departments about the burn books, which also make graphic accusations about students', or even teac