Old but I stumbled on it recently and thought it was funny again.....
Media treat Obama like an artifact of a foreign culture - St. Petersburg Times
"........And, of course, Fox News Channel anchor E.D. Hill stepped in it big-time when she seemed to suggest one interpretation of the move could be as a "terrorist fist jab." She has since, mercifully, apologized (Hill also lost her 11 a.m. show Tuesday in a move Fox News says is not related to the comment.)
Still, to prevent further confusion, perhaps we should go over a few more nuggets from black culture that Obama might reference as the campaign progresses.
"Brother" — When black folks use this term to refer to another black person, they are not necessarily talking blood relations. The likely reference: a shorthand for the old-school term of affection, "Soul Brother."
"Diss" — Shorthand for "disrespect," this is a term used when someone insults another, disparaging their status. So you might say John McCain's recent words about the Democratic candidate's lack of foreign policy experience were a serious diss to Obama.
The hand clinch leading into a one-armed embrace
AKA THE THUG HUG— This is a move light years beyond the "closed-fisted high five" Obama brought to the nation June 3. Here, the clincher executes an open-ended hand clasp with his subject, then pulls the person in for a one-handed hug. For extra cool points, make your fingers snap with the subject as you end the hand clasp. Novices should not attempt this without a third party spotting.
"Whassup" — Black folks stopped using this greeting when its widespread use in a Budweiser Super Bowl commercial made every Caucasian with ESPN sling it at their acquaintances of color. Still, if anyone can make its use cool again, Obama's the man.
In seriousness, his use of the dap seems much more about his generation — blending ethnic cultures in a way some academics call "post racial." So it's odd that an action that has been mainstream for so long suddenly takes on an exotic quality because Obama does it.
The truth is, it's just a cool handshake.
I hope journalists learn to save the thumb-sucking explainer pieces for when they're really needed. Because Obama's appeal isn't in the exotic way he brings black culture to politics, but in the seemingly effortless way he navigates black and white culture, suggesting a comfortable common ground.