SEPTEMBER 2010
THE BLACK EYED PEAS
How the Band Takes Care of Business

Selling records used to be the secret to success in the music business. For the Black Eyed Peas, it has been all about corporate connections. On their path to the top, the Peas have been escorted by a parade of corporate backers, cultivated by frontman will.i.am. From BlackBerry to Levi’s, Honda to Pepsi, brands have padded the group’s video budgets, sponsored its tours and showcased band members in prominent places. Cover Story

THE SUMMER SIX
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

SPORTS | LEBRON JAMES

“I’m going to take my talents to South Beach” —LeBron James, NBA Star

The biggest sports U.S. story was a fast-moving one, as Mr. James went from coveted NBA free-agent darling to sports villain in a matter of a few minutes on ESPN. In July, Mr. James announced on an hourlong ESPN special that he would leave Cleveland and sign with the Miami Heat. The telecast got high ratings, with 13 million viewers, but the network, Mr. James and his hand-picked interviewer, Jim Gray, were widely panned for what many critics saw as an ego-driven spectacle. ESPN’s own internal ethics watchdog blasted the network for overhyping its coverage of Mr. James and for yielding editorial control of the broadcast to the basketball player. Read more about Sports at WSJ.com

TECHNOLOGY | IPHONE 4
“We’re not perfect”
—Steve Jobs, Apple CEO

It started out as the biggest technology story of the summer—the release of Apple’s iPhone 4. But by the end of the summer, it had become a story about damage control, prompting Mr. Jobs to publicly acknowledge his fallibility. Apple products tend to have a devoted following, but users of the new device complained of dropped calls and poor reception due to the iPhone 4’s peculiar antenna design. Mr. Jobs said the iPhone’s problems are no different from those of other modern smartphones. Nonetheless, he offered consumers a choice of a new case for the phone or a full refund. Apple’s top iPhone executive left the company shortly afterward. Read more about the iPhone at WSJ.com

SPORTS | WORLD CUP
“The U.S. is a soccer nation.”
—Don Garber, Major League Soccer Commissioner

This year’s World Cup final between Spain and the Netherlands drew the biggest-ever U.S. audience for a soccer match, a total of 24.3 million viewers, and leaders of U.S. Soccer are hoping to use those numbers, along with the U.S. team’s performance in the tournament, to strengthen their bid to host the World Cup in 2018 or 2022. (The U.S. hosted the tournament in 1994.) Spain won the final 1-0, but the real winner was South Africa, whose economy and ambitions received a huge shot of confidence from hosting the 2010 tournament. Read more about the World Cup at WSJ.com

BUSINESS | GULF OIL SPILL
“I’d like my life back.”
—Tony Hayward, BP CEO

The disaster aboard BP’s Deepwater Horizon offshore oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico started with an explosion in late April that killed 11 people. But the situation spiraled out of control over the next couple of months, as a blown well nearly a mile underwater spewed millions of barrels of crude oil into the Gulf—soiling beaches, killing off wildlife and wiping out the local fishing industry. BP engineers tried a host of ideas to contain the damage, but it wasn’t until early July that BP engineers managed to fully cap the well. By then, the BP name had become mud. Mr. Hayward, the CEO, got his wish and lost his job, and BP reported a second-quarter loss of $17 billion. Read about the Gulf oil spill at WSJ.com

INTERNATIONAL | AFGHANISTAN
“The battlefield consequences … are potentially severe
and dangerous.”
—Robert Gates, Secretary of Defense

Nine years after it started, the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan is becoming more difficult for the U.S. and its allies. July was the deadliest month ever for U.S. troops in the country, with 66 American soldiers killed, breaking a record set the previous month. Meanwhile, a group called WikiLeaks.org published a massive trove of classified Pentagon documents—covering a period from January 2004 to late 2009—that presented a bleak view of the Afghan war and criticized Pakistani forces for helping the Taliban. The release of classified files drew an angry response from the Obama administration, which said the breach could put U.S. and Afghan forces at risk and hamper the war effort. The administration initiated a new Afghan strategy in December 2009. Read about international news at WSJ.com

ECONOMICS | UNEMPLOYMENT
“It’s not the job of my dreams.”
—Lynda Bernstein, Furniture Saleswoman

A recovery in the job market stalled over the summer, with 14.6 million Americans still searching for work, and unemployment stuck at 9.5%. The slowdown increases pressure on the government to do something to spark the job market, but some economists say it has exhausted most of its options. Ms. Bernstein lost her $70,000-a-year job as a physician recruiter last summer, and now makes $10 an hour. Says Ms. Bernstein: “I need some income and I need benefits. You do what you have to do.” Read about the economy at WSJ.com