John Boal Photography

You will not be able to stay home, brother. You will not be able to plug in, turn on and cop out. You will not be able to lose yourself on skag and skip, Skip out for beer during commercials, Because the revolution will not be televised. - Gil Scott Heron, 1974 Heron wrote his song in the 70’s and it was in reference to the black power movement. But it’s still relevant. It’s about empowerment, transparency, and ultimately, equality. But it's also about rising up from within, and not waiting to be told to protest. To find that fortitude, and courage to stand up when the act of doing so is a risk in and of itself. This revolution will not be televised. It will be a link on facebook. It will be a twitter posting. It will not be classic journalism, and because of that, the Iranian government, notoriously controlling and paranoid, will not be able to suppress the will of the people. Journalists are already shut out, but this hasn't stopped the free flow of information out of Iran. T...

Another round of high school graduates has taken flight. Good night, and good luck. This isn't exactly the same environment I was lucky enough to graduate into in 1993. Graduation ceremonies are, for the most part, exactly the same in many ways. The kids are happy, the parents are happy, and it’s usually hot and humid. I’m pretty sure the two hottest, and most humid days last year were the two graduations I covered as a freelancer. This year, while not as hot, was just as humid, but I was saved by having all of them either indoors, or under a pavilion. Nevertheless, the interesting parts of the graduations ceremonies have always been the wide discrepancy of the featured speakers. I saw a former congressman, a former student (and recent valedictorian of the Coast Guard Academy), and a staffer from VA Gov. Kaine’s office. The speeches were brief and long-winded, funny and serious. And generally spoke mostly about personal responsibility. Of them all, there was a particular speake...