DUMBASSIFICATION.(The Talk of the Town)

Publication: The New Yorker

Publication Date: 12-APR-04

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COPYRIGHT 2004 All rights reserved. Reproduced by permission of The Condé Nast Publications Inc.

An hour or so after Air America began broadcasting last week, Chuck D, the front man for the rap group Public Enemy, arrived at its studios, on Park Avenue South. He was wearing a black nylon tracksuit, a black T-shirt, a black headband, and black suede sneakers, and he carried a black bag. He was running late, but he pointed out that, since he generally prefers to work from 2 to 5 a.m., the hour--1 p.m.--was actually quite early. In the studios, he ran into Michael Moore, the filmmaker, who had on a red baseball cap.

"You excited?" Moore asked.

Chuck D shrugged. "As excited as I can get," he said.

Depending on how you look at it,...

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